Back Around Again
by Vondrakenhof
Summary: Ash has returned from Unova to take on the Indigo League once more. He's focused and he's ready, he just needs to get all eight badges for the second time. He'll meet old friends and new enemies as he goes Back Around Again.
1. Chapter 1

**Vondrakenhof here. **I'm announcing my triumphant return to Pokémon fanfiction! Okay, so it's not a big deal to you guys but it kind of is to me. Mainly because this is a big undertaking. You can't write a short story about Ash going back to travel around Kanto taking on the gyms again. It's got to be a big story. A really big one. I've got it all planned out and I really hope I can do it justice. The first three chapters are written already so Chapter 2 will be released next Friday and Chapter 3 will be the following Friday.

So, a few things you need to know. First of all this is set just after the end of the Unova league. Ash decided to come home straight away instead of whatever happened after that, I haven't watched it. Now I didn't particularly like the Best Wishes series because (A) they made Ash even stupider and (B) he's supposed to get better as he goes on not worse. However I did like two things, the Pokémon he caught and making Jesse and James more competent. Which is why I'm setting this after Unova, it let's me play with Oshawott and Krookodile among others.

Second Ash is **sixteen. **I'll put my reasoning for that in the author's note at the bottom. Age up everyone else as you think appropriate.

Okay so that's everything except for asking for reviews. Please do, I can't tell what I'm doing right and what I'm doing wrong unless I get some honest criticism and that means I can't improve. **Enjoy!**

* * *

**Back Around Again.**

Pallet Town. It was a sleepy little settlement in the southwest of the Kanto region. There were a handful of shops and services around for the small populace. The houses had been built spread out, all over the open plains. Professor Oak's lab stood upon the far hill, windmill turning slowly. It never seemed to change, no matter how long he was away for. Ash Ketchum stared down the pathway to his hometown, taking a moment to revel in the feeling of coming home after the months spent in Unova.

"Ready Pikachu?" he asked his companion, who rode on his shoulder. The yellow mouse Pokémon yelled an affirmative before leaping from his perch and racing down the track. The young trainer laughed and tore after his friend. Ash loved travelling, and this, the feeling of coming home, was as much a part of travelling as discovering new places. He would always love this moment.

Ash kept pace with Pikachu, the electric-type not wanting to get too far ahead, until they reached a familiar house. Pikachu put on a burst of speed, glad to be home. He dashed through the open gateway in the white picket fence before jumping for the doorbell. A beaming Ash caught up before the tone ended so Pikachu retook his position on the right shoulder. The door swung inward and the young man found himself staring into eyes that were much like his own.

"Ash…" breathed his mother.

"Hey Mom," he replied, smiling widely.

Delia Ketchum grabbed her son in a crushing bear-hug. Every time he went away it was obvious that Delia feared something bad would happen to him. And each time he came back her relief was palpable. "Welcome home."

As he returned the hug Ash noticed that something was different. He wondered about it for a moment before it hit him. _He was looking over the top of his mother's head._ He had finally grown taller than his mother during his time in Unova. He didn't know how he felt about that. There was the simple joy a boy gets when he realises how much taller he'd gotten. There was a cold fear that he would be an adult soon, and have real responsibilities. And there was the desire to be the man Delia Ketchum deserved to have for a son. "Thanks Mom."

"Pika!" greeted Pikachu, feeling slightly left out of the warm family reunion. Delia released her son and took the Pokémon into her arms.

"And how could I forget you Pikachu?" she asked, holding him close. "Thank you for taking care of my baby."

"Hardly a baby anymore Mom," retorted Ash, but he was still smiling.

"You'll always be my baby," she answered before looking curiously at her son. Ash was a little unnerved by the intensity of her stare when she spoke again. "What is that on your face?"

"There's something on my face?" asked Ash. He ran his hands over it a couple of times, wondering what it could be. He didn't feel anything. "Did I get it?"

"What is this?" she asked again reached for him. When she grasped him by the hairs on his chin he realised she was talking about his beard. What little there was of it at any rate. "Why has my son been running around with this fluff on his face?"

"It's my beard Mom," replied Ash nervously, he didn't like where this was going. "I like it."

Delia narrowed her eyes at the offending tuft of facial hair. "No. This is unacceptable. You march yourself upstairs mister and shave that fluff off right now!"

"But Mom," Ash protested in a small voice. "It makes me feel all manly."

"Now."

Ash hastened to obey, ignoring the traitorous snickers of his starting Pokémon.

* * *

Ash grumbled to himself over the loss of his beard. Truthfully he hadn't even noticed its growth while on his journey. However now it was gone he wanted it back. He'd been called kid and boy and twerp so much over his journey that sometimes he resented it. If he had a beard no one would call him a kid again.

_Well,_ he thought with a snort, _Iris would. She calls everyone under the sun a kid. _His musings were interrupted by the front door opening. He was sure he heard Professor Oak greeting his mother. Ash headed down the stairs where he spotted the Professor, Gary and Tracey. Gary took one look at Ash's face and burst out laughing.

"What happened to you?" asked his former rival. "Did you get attacked by a Scyther?"

Ash flushed. Shaving had not gone well. Nearly a dozen pieces of paper were stuck to his face, held on by his blood. "It was my first time using a razor," he mumbled.

He was saved from another of Gary's undoubtedly witty comments by the elder Oak. "I'm sure you'd like to tell Ash what happened the first time _you_ tried to shave Gary," he said with a small smirk. "He couldn't touch his face for a week."

Ash smiled at the abashed look on his friend's face before Tracey stepped in the way to grasp his hand. "Good to see you again Ash," said the watcher with a wide grin. "Congratulations on the Unova league."

"Yes well done my boy," added Professor Oak.

Ash shrugged. "I should have done better," he said. He frowned. He'd been stupid and hadn't played to his strengths. He'd just made everything a head on confrontation even if he'd been at a disadvantage. What had he been thinking when he fought Cameron's Lucario? Quick Attack and Iron Tail were never going to do much damage to it. He should have blasted it with electric attacks right from the get-go. "We'll just have to train harder next time, right Pikachu?" The Pokémon agreed with a lazy "Kaaa" from his place on the couch. "Though not tonight," Ash added with a chuckle.

"Dinner's on!" called Delia from the kitchen, where she and her Mr. Mime were setting the table.

"Alright!" cried Ash. Pikachu leapt up from his seat. Both were eager for the home-cooked wonders of Mrs Ketchum.

* * *

"So Ash," Professor Oak began. The dinner had been wonderful and only Ash was still eating. He paused his chewing to show he was listening. "Do you have any idea where you're going to go next?"

Delia sighed. She had hoped that this conversation wouldn't happen tonight. She didn't like the idea of only having her baby home for a short time before he went rushing off towards another adventure. But he was never meant to stay in one place for any length of time. He was too much like his father.

Ash swallowed his mouthful of food carefully. True, usually his manners escaped him but it was often only when he was eager. And Professor Oak's question didn't provoke the same eagerness it had in the past. "Honestly Professor, I don't know," he answered. "I'd like to spend some time at home figuring that out."

"That would be wonderful," said Delia with a shining smile. She stood up to hug her son again. "You take all the time you need," she said.

"Mom," groused Ash as Gary failed to hide his snickers. Even Tracey bore a cheeky grin.

"Well, I'm headed to Hoenn," announced the young researcher. "Professor Birch offered me the chance to join him on some fieldwork. He's supposed to be one of the best."

Ash nodded. "Yeah he was always out in the wilderness when I was there," he said. He looked at Gary. "Hey, if you're ever in Petalburg drop by the gym. The leader Norman and his family are friends of mine."

"May and Max right?" asked Gary. Ash nodded. "Sure, no problem man."

The conversation was interrupted by the shrill sound of a video phone. Delia quickly stood and walked out to the hall to get it. The four men were left in an awkward silence.

"So tell me Ash," said Tracey, trying to fill the silence. "What was your favourite thing about Unova?"

"It had to be the battle clubs," answered Ash. "Every town had a state of the art facility for battling. It was pretty awesome." Tracey looked like he was going to ask another question but he was interrupted by Ash's mother calling him to the phone.

Ash walked to the hall, wondering who wanted to talk to him. As his mother handed him the phone he saw the familiar orange locks tied in a side pony tail to keep it out of blue-green eyes.

"Misty!" exclaimed Ash. He tried to ignore the sudden feeling of his insides clenching when he saw his old travelling companion.

"Hey Ash," she replied. "I'm sorry I didn't get to come to your home-coming, all the newbie trainers go mad after the leagues go on and I've been swarmed by kids with Rattata and Pidgey and _Caterpie."_ She shuddered.

Ash smiled. He always thought it was endearing that a girl who owned a Gyarados, one of the scariest Pokémon he knew, still got freaked out by tiny bug-types. "It's alright, I understand. It's not like you could leave your sisters to it, they'd probably put their badges in a bucket outside the door."

"That does sound like something they'd do," said Misty. "But it's _so_ boring. I haven't had a proper challenge in months."

"I guess I'll have to pay you a visit," teased Ash.

"You better," replied Misty. Her tone dropped a bit and her smile shrunk when she continued. "How long before you're traipsing off to some other far away region?"

"I don't know," answered Ash honestly. "I promise I'll visit before that happens."

"I'll hold you to that." Misty's smile was back now. Ash wondered if the heating was getting too high. "Hard luck in Unova," she said with a sympathetic look.

Ash nodded. Misty he knew he wasn't happy with his performance. "It was my fault, I let myself get too caught up in the moment and didn't think things through." He sighed and ignored her comment about _never_ thinking things through. "Last year I knocked out two Legendary Pokémon in the semi-finals. This year I didn't even make it that far."

"Well you better learn from this Ketchum! Or I'll bring the mallet around," she threatened, but she was smiling at him. Ash felt something swell inside his chest. There was a crash from behind Misty, somewhere in the gym. "Crap, I've gotta go. Bye Ash."

"Bye Mist," he said before he replaced the phone. Ash sighed; it would have been nice if Misty had been at dinner. He noticed a mail icon flashing on the screen. Opening it he realised it was from Brock.

_Ash,_

_Hope you're well. I know you're probably beating yourself up over not getting further but you just have to try harder. I know you can do it and one day I'll be able to tell all the girls I helped train a Champion. Your Unovan Pokémon look amazing, you'll have to let me see them next time we meet up. I'm sorry I couldn't come to Pallet Town but I'm just starting my second year at college. It's tougher than I thought it would be, and I still have I don't know how many years left._

_I'll see you as soon as possible._

_Brock._

Ash frowned. They were each going their own way now, the original trio. He couldn't help feel that they were growing further apart. He didn't like that, not one bit.

* * *

It had been three weeks since Ash had come home. Every day since then he'd gone up to the Oak ranch to see his Pokémon. At first it had only been to spend time with them and play around but after a week or so they'd gotten back into training.

"Okay guys, you know the drill," he called as he planted homemade targets in the ground. "Group up by type and try to outdo each other." There was a mad scramble to obey. Ash had come up with this idea after the first couple of days. Trying to train more than thirty Pokémon at once was an exercise in futility. Now each of the little groups trained each other while Ash picked one group to focus on for the day. "Fighting types are with me."

Heracross, Infernape, Pignite and Scraggy followed Ash out to an open patch of the field. Pikachu leapt off his shoulder to watch the training.

"Okay," Ash began. "Out of four of you Infernape is the probably the best fighter when it comes to fighting type moves. So we're going to see what we can learn from him." Pignite and Heracross accepted this with a nod. Scraggy on the other hand turned to scowl at Infernape. When the fire type noticed the smaller Pokémon he crouched down to stare. Scraggy immediately head-butted him. Infernape barely noticed but Scraggy's head caught on fire. It ran around panicking before Totodile noticed. Laughing, the big jaw Pokémon doused Scraggy with a water gun before returning to training.

"So Scraggy, are you done?" asked Ash in a firm tone. Scraggy seemed to mumbled an assent. "Good now we can get started. Infernape?" The fire type positioned itself across from his master. "What I can tell you all is you have to be quick and relentless. Come at me Infernape."

Infernape looked confused for a moment before launching into an attack on Ash. The trainer danced out of the way, slapping at punches that came too close. It was after jumping a low sweep that Ash was caught by a fist in the stomach sending him tumbling to the ground.

"Well done," he gasped as he got up. "Heracross, show me what you've got." The bug type shook its head. "Heracross if you hesitate in battle you're going to get hurt." The single horn Pokémon still refused. Ash sighed then threw a punch at Heracross. The bug type's eyes widened. It grabbed Ash's hand and swung the trainer over its shoulder. Ash landed on his back.

"Nice one Heracross," he said with a smile.

"Ah, there you are Ash. I hope I'm not interrupting anything?" Ash looked up to find Professor Oak staring down at him with an amused smile.

"Oh, no Professor," said Ash, getting up. "Just a little training." He looked back at his Pokémon. "You guys keep going I'll be back in a minute." Walking over to the Professor he asked: "What can I do for you?"

"Well I was wondering Ash," Oak began. "Have you given any more thought to the question I asked the night you came home?"

Ash paused for a moment. He had given thought. A lot of thought in fact. "Professor, what do my Pokémon do while I'm away?" he asked.

Professor Oak was a bit thrown by the sudden change of topic. "Well, Bulbasaur helps me around the ranch, it's always settling disputes between the Pokémon. Muk smothers anyone who comes in here. Sceptile, Infernape and Buizel all train most days. As for the rest, they live out their lives much the same as if they were in the wild. Just with regular feedings." Oak chuckled.

Ash nodded. "Every time I go off on a new adventure I leave my friends here to do nothing. Pikachu's the only one who gets constant training." He looked out at his Pokémon, the flying types swooping through the air, the water types blasting away at targets, the grass types practicing their leaf techniques. Snorlax and the leader of the Tauros herd were battling, Quilava and Torkoal were comparing flamethrowers and Torterra was demonstrating its earthquake attack to the other ground types. "That was a mistake," said Ash. "I've been neglecting them. It's time I started rotating them all into the team."

Professor Oak nodded. He thought it was a good idea. "And where will you do this?"

"Here," said Ash turning back to look at the Professor. "I'd like to compete in the Indigo Conference again."

* * *

**AN: **So, what did you think? The next two chapters are more exciting but obviously it's important to set the story up.

Right, I told you I'd share my reasoning for Ash's age. If you don't care that's fine but somebody might. There are a number of assumptions here but I think the logic is sound.

**Age** **10-**Ash leaves Pallet with Pikachu. According to the novelizations (at least according to what bulbapedia tells me is in the novelizations) this is in April, possibly April 1st.

**Age 11- **Again according to the above source Ash's birthday is May 22nd (if he did in fact leave on April 1st).  
-Ash returns to Viridian City one year after he arrived in episode 2. He says this in the English dub, I'm not sure about the original Japanese.  
-Ash returns to Pallet Town and is told the League is in three months.

**Age 12- **Ash competes in the Indigo League in July/August.  
-Ash travels around the Orange Islands for a couple of months.  
-Ash travels to Johto and reaches Big City by April 1st (it's the anniversary of when Ash and Pikachu met).

**Age 13- **Ash competes in the Johto League. Assuming the Leagues are around the same time (not the exact same time as then Charles Goodshow couldn't attend them all) it's July/August again.  
-Ash travels to Hoenn.

**Age 14- **Ash competes in the Hoenn League.  
-Ash takes on the Battle Frontier. This is his second time around Kanto so it takes a lot less time and having a Poénav keeps them from getting lost too much.  
-Ash travels to Sinnoh.

**Age 15- **Ash competes in the Sinnoh League.  
-Ash returns home and spends the winter there.  
-Ash travels to Unova in early spring as Spring form Deerling are everywhere.

**Age 16- **Ash competes in the Unova League. It's definitely summer as there are green Deerling around.  
-Ash returns home and our story begins.


	2. Chapter 2

**Vondrakenhof here. **Do you have any idea how hard it is to have a chapter written and not post it because you've made a schedule? I've been wanting to post this all week. And now I'll have to wait another week before I post Chapter 3 _next _Friday. It's better this way because it gives me time to write ahead even though I should be studying. Ah well.

Not much to say this week, just that I'm trying to make every chapter like an episode of the anime. Hopefully it works. Please tell what I'm doing wrong and what I'm doing right. It can only help me. So review, please. **Enjoy the story!**

* * *

**Back Around Again.**

Ash sat at the kitchen table in his house, looking over a map of Kanto. Professor Oak had told him that badges could only ever be used once to enter into a Pokémon League competition. In order to do so again he'd have to retrace the steps of his original journey. Though Ash did want to do it more efficiently, it had taken over a year to get around Kanto the first time but he knew he would do it much sooner this time. That was as long as he didn't get lost.

Besides, he'd gotten around foreign regions in a shorter time since then. The deadline of next July would be ages away when he was done. So Ash was planning his path.

According to the map the best way would be follow his original journey to Cerulean city but from there head to Saffron instead of going around it to Vermillion. How he'd managed that as a child he didn't know. After Saffron he'd have to trek to Vermillion and back again before going to Celadon. After that Fuchsia and Cinnabar would be next.

Ash was getting excited. Not only was this a chance to better his performance in his home league he'd also get to visit his friends. He decided he'd go over his plans with both Brock and Misty to see if they had anything to add.

"This will be a great journey," he said to himself. He was roused from his thoughts when his mother called him for help with the shopping. She'd offered to cook him a big going away meal tonight. Ash quickly got up to help her and Mr. Mime.

"Thanks honey," she said when he relieved her of two large paper bags filled to the brim with food. For the last few weeks Delia Ketchum had been doting on her boy and now that he was leaving again she was going to make sure that he did so on a full stomach.

"What are we having tonight Mom?" asked Ash, who was trying to peek into the bags.

"That would spoil the surprise," she answered.

* * *

Dinner turned out to be a collection of some of Ash's favourite foods. There were cheeseburgers and chilli dishes and homemade ramen. There was also a bottle of ketchup for Pikachu. Of course the first thing Ash did was to pile chilli and ramen onto one of the burgers. He then inhaled it and went back for more.

Delia and Tracey looked on, amused at Ash's usual eating habits while Professor Oak tried his best not to look. He was afraid he'd lose his appetite. Conversation was sparse throughout the meal as all four of them focussed on their food. It was when Ash was the only one eating that it started up again.

"… so Professor Birch is getting him to investigate the possible causes for the stubbornness of Tailow," said Professor Oak hours later as he finished updating them of Gary's progress in Hoenn.

"Doesn't that sound delightful," said Delia.

"I don't see why he has to look into the causes," said Ash. "I mean it's just how they are. I know Swellow would never give up in a fight. That's all I need to know."

"And that is why you're not a researcher Ash," said Oak, not unkindly. "Oh, speaking of research I have something for you." He pulled something from the pocket of his lab coat and handed it to Ash. "It's the latest model."

Ash turned the device over in his hands. It was slim, with a red plastic back but the whole from was taken up by a screen. "It's a Pokédex?"

"With complete, up-to-date information," answered the Professor. "It's also equipped with a mobile phone, a camera and a Global Positioning System."

Ash slid his thumb over the screen, lighting up the display. It was just like a phone, the number pad taking up the bottom half of the screen but three symbols appeared at the top. A question mark, a camera and a compass covered the top. Ash pointed the device at Pikachu and pressed the question mark.

"Pikachu, the Mouse Pokémon and the evolved form of Pichu," said the automated voice of Dexter. "This intelligent Pokémon roasts hard berries with electricity to make them tender enough to eat."

Ash smiled. "Thanks Professor Oak."

"So are you all packed?" asked Delia. Ash nodded. "Changes of clothes? Food? First aid kit?" Ash nodded at each of these. "Spare underwear? Razor?"

"Mom!" exclaimed Ash. _Why does she always have to do that?_ he thought.

"I just have to make sure," she said as if reading his thoughts. "I have something for you too," she added, getting up from the table. She rushed upstairs and was back before Ash could wonder what it could be.

"Here," said Delia, holding out a box. Ash took it, gently taking the lid off. Inside was a jacket. He pulled it out of the box. It was the same shade of blue he always wore but it had long sleeves and a large zip down the middle.

"Thanks Mom," Ash said before giving her a hug.

"Now head to bed," she ordered. "You've got an early start tomorrow and I'm not letting you sleep in. Again," she added with a smirk.

"I'm never living that down, am I?" muttered Ash as Professor Oak and Tracey chuckled. "Goodnight."

Picking up a sleeping Pikachu he headed up the stairs to his room. He wasn't really tired but he knew he'd have to get up early the next morning to set off. He didn't bother to turn on the light as he entered his room. He set Pikachu down on the end of the bed and his new jacket on his desk. From the light coming through the door he could see his old posters, showing the Kanto starters, Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle. He saw his gym badges from six regions and Battle Frontier symbols and the trophy from the Orange League.

And he saw his old official Pokémon League hat atop a shelf.

Reaching up Ash took it down. It had been through a lot. Seen a lot of things. It had taken him a million postcards to get. It was the envy of many and it had been lost or stolen a few times. Without knowing why Ash put the hat on.

_Yeah, _he thought, _this works._ He took it off again before putting it with his new jacket and climbing into bed.

* * *

"Now I've put in some food to tide you over until you reach Viridian City," said Delia, holding a backpack out to her son. Ash took it in hand but was confused when his mother didn't let it go. She continued in a stern voice. "Remember to shave. And to change your you-know-whats every day."

"Mom!" Ash exclaimed, his face burning. "I'm sixteen years old, do you have to remind to… do that… every chance you get?" He desperately tried to ignore Pikachu's chuckles.

"Yes I do," she answered. Delia released the bag and hugged Ash. "You're my baby and you always will be. No matter how big you get."

The young man returned his mother's hug before awkwardly extracting himself from it.

"Goodbye Mom," he said, turning away from her and their house, walking down the road. Delia waved after him. With each step Ash felt a strange feeling building within him. Every time he'd gone on a journey before he'd felt excited, eager with the tiniest bit of fear that he wouldn't admit to having. Now it was different. The excitement was there but it was muted. There was no fear, not even trepidation. This time Ash felt a quiet confidence and a sense of inner time Ash felt like a storybook hero, gone off to learn how to fight in foreign lands, now returning home to conquer all. To claim what was his. He smiled.

Ash removed his pokéballs from his belt as he reached the crest of the hill looking over his hometown. Five creatures materialised before him as he opened the balls. Gliscor took to the skies, swooping and diving. Bayleef and Tauros stretched their legs. Pikachu hopped down from Ash's shoulder, taking a place between Gible and Oshawott.

"We're heading to Viridian today," said Ash, getting the attention of his Pokémon. "It's the first step on our journey back to the Indigo Conference. So we're going to start off right." He took off down the track at a jog. "Keep pace with me, you guys!" he yelled.

Pikachu was the first to catch up, having half expected the workout. He knew his trainer's mind better than any of the others. Gliscor wasn't far behind but it had trouble slowing its glide to stay overhead. The other four joined shortly with Bayleef and Tauros having an easier time than the dragon and water type Pokémon.

Ash smiled widely. The first time he'd taken this path he had rubber gloves on and was dragging Pikachu behind him with a clothes line. He failed miserably at catching any Pokémon that day and managed to piss off an entire flock of Spearow so much the pair of them were nearly killed. If he hadn't stolen Misty's bike and Pikachu hadn't used that incredible attack they would have been torn apart. Of course if Misty hadn't fished them out of the river they would have been just as dead.

_I never really thanked her for that,_ thought Ash. Misty had been his first human friend since Gary had turned into a rival. He'd never intended to repay her for the bike, just in case that debt was all that was keeping her around. It had taken until he was thirteen to learn that wasn't the case, when she was leaving anyway.

The sound of running water broke into Ash's thoughts. They'd reached a fast moving river. Ash knew exactly which one it was. It led to the waterfall he had jumped off years ago. He slowed down, walking next to the water until he reached the drop.

The waterfall looked exactly as he remembered it, much bigger than it really was. Ash had jumped and fallen from much greater heights since his first day but this one always stuck out in his mind.

"So how do we get down?" he asked himself. Oshawott heard him. The sea otter Pokémon leapt from the cliff and into the water below. A moment later he jumped out onto the bank. He looked very proud of himself.

"Yes, very good Oshawott," Ash called down, "but I am not eager to jump into that water. Again."

"Gible!" yelled Ash's little dragon type as it threw itself past the young man and off the cliff, causing him and Pikachu to cry out. It plummeted after Oshawott, straight into the ground. Instead of crashing painfully the land shark Pokémon used Dig to keep going, resurfacing not far away. Oshawott looked at it like it was crazy.

"That works too, I guess," muttered Ash. He held out two pokéballs. "Bayleef, Tauros, return." The two larger Pokémon disappeared in a flash of red light. Pikachu climbed onto Ash's shoulder. "Hang on buddy," he said before beginning his descent.

The climb down was slow. Ash placed his feet carefully, gripping what handholds he could find firmly and trying not to pay attention to the ground below. It went well until a rock he grabbed came loose. He fell.

All of three feet.

Ash tried to ignore the laughter of his Pokémon as he stood up. "Come on, let's go."

* * *

It took longer than he thought it would for Ash to reach the spot where he'd met Misty. The river had swept him pretty far before she'd hooked him. The place was exactly the same. Only the orange leaves on the trees indicated that any time had passed. Ash breathed deep.

"We're stopping here for a while," he announced. He released Bayleef and Tauros again. "You two spar together," he instructed. "Gible, Gliscor, you too." He turned to Oshawott, pokéball in hand. "You and I are going to work on something."

A minute later the water type stood on the opposite bank. Ash waved at him. Oshawott was in the water in a flash. Ash immediately tried to return him, aiming the pokéball at where he thought Oshawott would be. He missed and the sea otter Pokémon disappeared. Ash watched the water carefully for any sign of his friend. Twice he spotted Oshawott and twice Oshawott avoided being recalled. Ash was looking over the river when Oshawott burst from the water in front of him. Ash had to duck to avoid a Hydro Pump attack.

"That was good," he told the Pokémon. "Try to be stealthier. Use the water to your advantage. I shouldn't be able to see you at all." They did it a few more times until Ash caught Oshawott as he jumped out of the water to attack.

"Too predictable," he said. "I got you because you used the same spot to attack each time." Ash sighed, Oshawott looked crestfallen. "You did well though," said Ash trying to cheer his water type up. "Let's stop for now."

He gave each of his friends some Pokémon food Professor Oak had given him. It was an original recipe of Brock's. Delicious, nutritious and filling it was everything a Pokémon needed. Ash had a sandwich his mother had packed for him. When they were all finished Ash returned his Pokémon, setting off down the track once again.

* * *

Ash awoke slowly in the dawn light. He had made camp the night before, cooking a tin of baked beans on an open fire for dinner. He wormed his way deeper into his sleeping bag. His efforts to go back to sleep were interrupted by a loud squawk.

Ash's eyes shot open. Staring down at him from above was a large Fearow. Ash tensed.

"Pikachu!" he hissed. "Wake up!"

"Pikapi," the mouse Pokémon mumbled sleepily from beside his head.

"I need your help here bud," Ash whispered. He shifted a little away from the flying type. The Fearow's eyes narrowed. It lunged.

"Pika!" cried Pikachu, striking the bird on the beak with a shining metal tail. The Fearow backed away, screeching its name. Pikachu's cheeks sparked as he stood between his trainer and the attacker.

"Fearow!" yelled the beak Pokémon before it turned and flew away.

"Well done Pikachu," said Ash as he got out of his bag. He hurriedly donned his jeans and jacket before cleaning up the campsite. He was stuffing his sleeping bag into his backpack when he heard the Fearow's cry again. He turned his head towards it.

The Fearow was coming back, and it was bring friends. Four other Fearow and a host of Spearow were following it.

"Eh, run?" asked Ash. Pikachu's answer was to turn and dash into the trees. Ash was right on his tail, tearing through any bushes that got in his way. Thorns and branches scratched at him as he tried his best to keep the flash of yellow in front of him in sight. Ash yelled out as he caught his foot on a tree root, sending him crashing to the ground. A Fearow burst through the trees behind him.

"Thunderbolt Pikachu!" he ordered. The electric type spun on his paws and let loose a bolt of lightning. The Fearow cried out in pain as it was engulfed in the attack. It flew up through the canopy to escape. Ash scrambled to his feet, running before a group of Spearow could reach him.

Ash and Pikachu broke into a clearing, an idyllic little gap in the trees which, on any other day, might have been the perfect spot for a picnic. The scene was ruined by the small army of flying Pokémon hovering above the treeline.

The two friends stood back to back, glaring at the surrounding birds. "Get ready Pikachu," murmured Ash. Sparks flew from his faithful partners cheeks.

"Pidgeot!"

A flash of light sped through the army, striking the lead Fearow, sending it reeling in pain. A majestic plumed bird materialised high above, flapping its wings so hard a gale was stirred up below. Many of the Spearow were blown away by the sudden winds but though the Fearow struggled they stayed where they were.

"Now Pikachu!" Ash ordered. The mouse Pokémon let loose another Thunderbolt, striking the beak Pokémon, causing them to lose their control and be swept away by the wind. Ash and Pikachu both let out a sigh of relief. The Pidgeot swooped down over the clearing, alighting on the top of a tree. Ash and Pikachu clambered up after it. When they reached the top they saw that the Pokémon was looking off into the distance.

"Hey Pidgeot," greeted Ash. "It's been a long time." Pidgeot cooed and bobbed its head. Ash turned to see what it was looking at. In the distance a large flock of birds were flying as fast as possible. Ash and Pikachu watched as another flock, the Fearow and Spearow the trainer realised, chased what must have been the Pidgey and Pidgeotto back into the trees.

"I guess the war's not over," said Ash. Looking at Pidgeot he noticed that the sun was still rising on their left. "You're trying to fly south," he murmured, "but the Fearow won't let you." He put his hand on his old friend's wing. "Do you need help?"

* * *

"Yahoo!"

Flying on Pidgeot was exactly as Ash remembered: exhilarating. The feel of the wind on his face, the open air around him, the adrenaline coursing through his veins, Ash couldn't help but laugh at the sheer joy of it.

Pidgeot shot through the air at a speed rivalling that of a small aircraft. Ash could barely believe how soon they reached the offending flock. The Fearow and Spearow, still harassing the birds in the trees, were caught unaware as Pidgeot struck. They were slow to react, a fact Ash took full advantage of.

"Thunderbolt!" he roared. Pikachu leapt from Pidgeot's back, out into the empty air. He unleashed a short burst of lightning in all directions, knocking many Spearow out of the sky. As Ash caught his friend the Pokémon still airborne turned their murderous glares on the group.

"Well," said Ash, "now we have their attention." Pidgeot banked hard, nearly throwing its riders off, and fled. The angry flock followed. Ash had to shield Pikachu from a few Spearow who had reached them before Pidgeot could pull away. The majestic bird Pokémon had to swerve to avoid a spinning Fearow as it dove at them from above. Ash gripped his friends harder, silently urging Pidgeot to go faster. The landscape passed beneath them quickly until they reached a small, craggy hill.

"Now!" yelled Ash. Pidgeot pulled into a steep climb, flying straight up, its passengers hanging on for dear life. Below a small dragon type Pokémon leapt from behind a rock. Gible pointed its nose up towards the sky. It strained to gather power within itself, an orange glow growing at its centre.

"Gib, Gible!" it cried, launching a bright sphere of light upwards. It reached the flock of Fearow and Spearow, reaching the centre of their formation. For a moment there was silence. Then the Draco Meteor exploded.

Ash heard the explosion, followed by screeches of pain and panic. He tore a pokéball from his belt.

"Turn around," he ordered Pidgeot. The bird Pokémon obeyed, performing a neat loop in the air before diving down. Ash saw that the flock had been thinned, with only the Fearow and a few Spearow remaining. "Gliscor," he cried. "Stone Edge!" The flying ground type appeared in a flash of light, pelting the birds with rocks. Pikachu leapt from his perch after Gliscor, using another Thunderbolt. When Gliscor caught Pikachu the pair glided away. Ash saw then that only the lead Fearow remained in the air, the one that had attacked him first.

"Sky Attack!" he bellowed. Pidgeot seemed to fly even faster towards the dazed Fearow, a harsh white light surrounding it and Ash. It struck in a jarring impact, sending the beak Pokémon spiralling into the trees. Pidgeot spread its wings, slowing its decent. It landed heavily next to Gible, followed shortly by Gliscor and Pikachu.

"Good job guys," said Ash as he dismounted. He looked at his first flying type who was staring south, where its flock was making good on their escape. "Go on," he said. "Take care of them." Pidgeot bobbed its head gratefully before taking flight once more, soon catching up with its friends. Ash smiled. After a moment the smile faltered.

"Wait, how are we supposed to find our way down?"


	3. Chapter 3

**Vondrakenhof **here. Well it's (technically) Friday so it's time for me to update this story. This chapter is the one I'm most worried about. I haven't written a structured Pokémon battle since I wrote **A Cerulean Reunion **the first story I posted on this site. Hopefully I've improved since then. But I could use some feedback so please review. It makes me stronger.

This chapter also includes an OC of mine so I could use some feedback on that too.

Anyway, Chapter 4 will be up next Friday. **Enjoy!**

* * *

**Back Around Again.**

Ash awoke to a grumbling stomach. He groaned. He and Pikachu had reached Viridian City the night before, checking into the Pokémon Centre shortly before curfew. Dead on his feet he'd collapsed on the bed without any supper, something that didn't happen often for him. Breakfast was calling. He decided to obey his stomach and rolled over.

_Thud!_

Ash spent a moment on the wooden floor, wondering why he hadn't just spent the night there. It was about as comfortable as the bed, but without the itchy sheets.

_I should have slept in my sleeping bag,_ he thought. He sighed. Climbing to his feet he picked Pikachu up carefully. His little friend was still asleep and liable to give Ash a shock if he was woken too soon. Dragging his feet Ash left the small room he'd rented.

* * *

Ash always believed that breakfast was the most important meal of the day. Of course he thought every meal was important, so breakfast was a big deal. Out in the wilds he didn't have much, especially since he was travelling alone, so he'd gone a bit overboard with the food that morning. Ash practically inhaled a plate of sausages, bacon, eggs, beans and fried potatoes. This was accompanied by several slices of jam covered toast and a large stack of pancakes. Pikachu ate his breakfast just as quickly: a bowl of Pokémon food smothered in Ketchup.

It was only when Ash was washing his giant meal down with a glass of orange juice that he realised he wasn't alone in the canteen. Two young kids, not much older than he had been when he first left home, sat together in a corner. The girl was picking at a bowl of fruit but the boy was just staring into his porridge. Both breakfasts were abandoned as soon as they spotted Nurse Joy walking in.

"Your Pokémon are fine," she said, anticipating the boy's question. She handed a pair of pokéballs to him. "They just needed a good night's rest."

"Thank you Nurse Joy," said the boy in a small voice. The girl thanked her too.

"Will you be challenging the gym again?"

The boy shook his head. "The leader's just too strong."

"Come on Will," said the girl, laying a hand on his shoulder. "We can train until you're ready. Or we can find other gyms. Gyms with easier leaders."

"Yeah," said Will after a pause. He looked at his friend. "Let's do that." The pair of them headed for the door, ready to leave.

"Hey kid," Ash called out to them. The children froze and turned to look at him. "Don't give up. You're never truly beaten until you give up." Will nodded. He and the girl left the Centre.

"That was nice of you," said Joy after a moment.

"I've been where he is," said Ash. "Sometimes you just need a few words of encouragement."

Nurse Joy nodded, smiling. "And you? Will you be challenging the gym?"

"Yeah I will," answered Ash. "But I've got to register first."

"Follow me."

Ash put his plates and cutlery away to be washed before joining the nurse at the main desk.

"Pokédex," said Joy, holding out her hand. Ash gave her the device and she slotted it into a port next to her keyboard. Tapping a few keys she made Ash's picture appear on the large screen behind her. "Alright Ash, everything seems to be in order. You are officially registered to take part in the Indigo Conference." She gave him back his Pokédex. "Good luck!"

* * *

The gym looked exactly the same as it had the last time, a magnificent building akin to a Roman temple, complete with columns. Ash swallowed a small lump that had formed in his throat. This was where he'd first seen Gary in a moment of weakness. This was where Team Rocket had forced him to feel the pain his Pokémon felt. This was where he'd faced off against a member of the Elite Four.

_I really hope Agatha isn't here anymore, _thought Ash. Looking to Pikachu for comfort he steeled himself and strode up the steps. Ash pushed his way through the door, entering the darkened gym. The door banged closed behind him.

"Hello?" called Ash. It seemed empty. The only lights in the building were over the battlefield. "I'm here for a gym match."

"And you are?" answered a male voice. Ash breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn't Agatha.

"Ash Ketchum, from Pallet Town."

A tall, rail-thin man stepped into the light on the opposite side of the field. He wore all black clothes. From his boots to his cargo pants to his long sleeved t-shirt. His brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail and he sported a trimmed goatee on his pale face. Ash noted the dark circles beneath the man's eyes and what must have been ten silver rings in his left ear.

"I'm Dirk, the gym leader here," he said. He seemed to study Ash, looking him up and down before letting his eyes rest on Pikachu. "This will be a three-on-three match." Dirk caught Ash's gaze. The younger trainer couldn't read anything from the gym leader. "You can substitute if you like."

Ash nodded and Dirk threw a pokéball out onto the field before crossing his arms. A spiked brown mouse Pokémon materialised in a flash of light.

"Sandslash huh?" murmured Ash. "Alright then, Gible go!" The dual type appeared shouting its name, ready to battle. Dirk didn't react at all.

"Rock Smash Gible!" yelled Ash. The land shark Pokémon leapt forward, swinging a glowing fist at the Sandslash. The mouse Pokémon took a step back, allowing the attack to pass by its snout. It responded by swinging its claw upward, scoring a Slash attack on Gible's nose. The dragon type reeled backward.

"Again," ordered Dirk. His Pokémon darted forward, swinging both glowing claws. Ash cried out in alarm but Gible jumped backward, keeping out of reach of every swipe.

"Get away from it," shouted Ash, realising that Sandslash had the advantage up close. Gible tried to dive passed the spine covered Pokémon but was caught by a Slash attack, sending it rolling across the battlefield. Gible grimaced at the pain but quickly got to its feet. "Use Dragon Pulse!" Gible held its stubby arms out, focusing its power. An orb of aquamarine light grew between the dragon types claws. With a yell Gible hurled the attack at Sandslash.

"Use Rollout to dodge," instructed Dirk. Sandslash jumped into the air and curled into a ball, turning itself into a spiked wrecking ball. It rolled aside avoiding the Dragon Pulse attack, which struck the ground harmlessly. Sandslash continued on, rolling across the field. It hit Gible to the ground and kept going, coming back around for another attack.

Ash gritted his teeth. Gible had gotten up quickly; being part ground type meant that Rollout didn't have much effect. At first. Ash knew from training with his Donphan that once Sandslash got enough momentum type effectiveness wouldn't matter. He watched Gible get clipped as it tried to dodge. Sandslash was gaining speed fast, charging at his Pokémon again. There had to be some-

Ash's eyes widened. "Gible," he yelled, "use Rock Smash on the ground!" Gible swung its fist down at the battlefield floor, striking hard enough to create a small crater, just as Sandslash was bearing down on it. The mouse Pokémon bounced. "Hit it into the air and use Draco Meteor!"

Gible head-butted the airborne Pokémon from beneath it. Sandslash rebounded straight up off Gible's head and fin. Gible began to glow with orange light.

"Sandslash watch out," said Dirk, uncrossing his arms for the first time since the match started. Sandslash uncurled itself. It found a bright orange globe hurtling towards it. The attack impacted Sandslash's stomach, carrying it further into the air, before it exploded.

Ash had to shield his eyes from the wind caused by the attack, Pikachu clinging hard to his shoulder. When the dust cleared Sandslash lay unconscious on its back. It disappeared in a beam of red light.

Dirk stared at the Pokéball in his hand for a moment before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He nodded, replacing the ball on his belt and taking another in hand. "You're up Nidoking," he said.

Ash watched as the large purple beast appeared before him. It was huge, at least a head and a half taller than most specimens he'd seen. It seemed to eye Gible with contempt, loosing a deep growl from its throat.

"You ready for this Gible?" asked Ash, not taking his eyes from the poison type Pokémon. Gible replied enthusiastically, seemingly unaffected by the intimidating creature before it. "Alright, let's start this off with Dig." The land shark Pokémon frantically clawed at the gym floor, quickly disappearing underground.

Dirk crossed his arms again. "Earthquake," he said. Nidoking lifted one heavy foot before slamming it down as hard as it could. Ash swore as he fought to stay on his feet.

"Gible!" he cried out. He knew his little dragon type must have taken massive damage from the attack and he was worried that it would be trapped beneath the surface. "Gible?"

The ground shifted. Slowly, Gible clawed its way out of the dirt. It pushed itself to its feet, staring unsteadily at Nidoking.

"It's still moving?" asked Dirk, surprise colouring his voice. He shook his head. "Finish it off Brick Break."

"Dragon Pulse Gible," said Ash. "Give it your best shot!"

Nidoking stomped towards the smaller Pokémon, a hard intensity in its eyes. Another flickering sphere of light appeared between Gible's claws. Ash noticed it was much smaller than before.

"Gi-ble," the dragon Pokémon whimpered as it strained to make the attack bigger. Nidoking raised its arm high above its head, ready to strike.

The aquamarine light winked out.

"Gible?"

Ash watched as the land shark Pokémon fell sideways, its eyes closed. It lay there at its opponent's feet, unconscious. Nidoking lowered its arm and trudged back to stand in front of its trainer. Gible vanished back into its pokéball.

"You did great," said Ash. He thanked it before replacing the ball on his belt. He narrowed his eyes at the drill Pokémon. It was strong, very strong. He needed to respond in kind. "Tauros, I choose you!"

The wild bull Pokémon appeared on the battlefield bellowing loudly. It glared at Nidoking, stomping a hoof on the floor. Nidoking just glared back.

"Tauros use Fissure!" ordered Ash. The bull Pokémon reared up in its hind legs before coming down with incredible force. The ground split so fiercely that a shining white light appeared to be racing towards the poison type Pokémon.

"Counter it with Earthquake," instructed Dirk. Once again Nidoking stomped its foot, causing the field to shake and cracks to spread out from the creature. As the Fissure and Earthquake met the cracks seemed to centre on the straight split. The Fissure deviated from its course, following the cracks in a zigzag pattern that doubled back on itself. When the attacks finally ended the middle of the field had been reduced to gravel, but both Pokémon remained unharmed. "Hone Claws."

Ash growled under his breath as Nidoking sharpened its claws. He needed to take back the initiative. "Take Down!"

Tauros charged. It crossed the battlefield quickly, the destroyed centre not slowing it at all. It bore down on Nidoking with power befitting the leader of its herd.

"Grab it," said Dirk. Nidoking made to catch the wild bull Pokémon by the horns, but at the last moment Tauros ducked its head. It struck its opponent in the midsection, driving the air from its lungs. Nidoking roared in pain as it slid backwards, but it managed to grab Tauros' horns before it could get away. "Push it back!"

Using all of its strength, Nidoking advanced, forcing Tauros to slide backwards on its hooves. Tauros snorted and bellowed, trying to resist, but it couldn't get enough grip.

"Horn Attack!" yelled Ash. Tauros yanked its head from side to side, thrusting one horn forward at a time. Nidoking winced at each strike, trying to hold its opponent still.

"Poison Jab," said Dirk. Nidoking let go of one horn and drew back a fist glowing with a hideous purple light. Tauros bellowed, trying to get away but Nidoking held firm. It hit the wild bull Pokémon in the neck, driving it down on to its front knees. Tauros got to its feet slowly, staggering. "Brick Break."

"Look out!" Ash shouted as Nidoking raised its arm. Tauros reared up, pulling out of the drill Pokémon's grip, but it was too late. It was struck high by the fighting type move, making it topple backwards.

"Tauros?" called Ash. The wild bull Pokémon struggled to stand on its hooves. Ash noticed the faint purple sheen on its face, as well the sweat matting its fur. He shook his head and held out a pokéball. "That's enough Tauros. Return."

As his Pokémon disappeared Ash regarded the Nidoking, Tauros had managed to do some damage to it. Hopefully it wouldn't be able to take much more. "Bayleef, go!"

The green sauropod emerged from her ball, eager to fight. She stood tall, staring down her opponent, refusing to be intimidated despite Nidoking's size and type advantage.

"Knock it out with a Poison Jab," said Dirk. Nidoking advanced on Bayleef, intent on defeating her quickly.

"Razor Leaf!" countered Ash. Swinging the leaf on her head Bayleef released a barrage of smaller leaves at her opponent. The drill Pokémon grimaced and shielded its face with one arm but it continued on.

"Keep it up," said Ash. Nidoking was struggling through the attack, pushing forward. Each leaf cut at it. It roared its annoyance, deciding to charge at Bayleef.

"Body Slam!"

Bayleef leapt at Nidoking with surprising grace. Nidoking's eyes widened at the unexpected move. It tried to brace itself as Bayleef crashed into it but the attack was too strong. It hit the ground with a loud thud.

Bayleef stood up, backing away from the poison type. Nidoking didn't move. Dirk returned it to its pokéball. Bayleef bounded over to her trainer.

"Well done Bayleef," said Ash, petting the leaf Pokémon's head. "He still has one Pokémon left, so let's win this."

"Bay, Bay!"

Ash looked over at his opponent. He did a double take.

Dirk was smiling.

It was a full grin, bearing his teeth. He had spent the whole match without an expression so now the gym leader's smile was creeping Ash out. It reminded the young trainer of a Banette.

"Well Ash," said Dirk, holding up a pokéball. "It's been a while since I've had to use this Pokémon. Are you ready?"

Ash swallowed his sudden apprehension and shouted: "Let's do this!"

"Go!" yelled Dirk as he threw the pokéball. The bright light coalesced into a giant orange and brown creature. It spread its arms and swung its clubbed tail as it roared. Sharp teeth littered its mouth and two dangerous looking horns were atop its head, one on its snout and one on its forehead. Bayleef took a step back.

"Rhyperior," said Dirk, the grin still on his face. "This one's actually strong. How about we show him what we're made of?" Rhyperior roared its agreement. "Use Rock Polish."

The rock type Pokémon slammed its fists together. The orange plates covering its stone body glowed red for a moment before returning to their original colour.

"Come on Bayleef," said Ash. We've beaten much tougher opponents than this. You can do it!" The electric Pokémon on his shoulder shouted his encouragement as well. Bayleef stepped forward again, emboldened by the support. "Use Razor Leaf!

"Drill Run!"

An onslaught of leaves flew towards Rhyperior who charged at a dead run, far too quick for something of its size. The large, drill-like horn on its head spun, able to carve through solid rock. It bulled through Bayleef's attack with ease, the leaves rebounding off its hard body. Bayleef's eyes widened.

"Bay!" she cried as the attack knocked her away. It took her a moment to struggle to her feet. She stared down the Rhyperior as it growled at her.

"Hammer arm," ordered Dirk. His Pokémon was next to Bayleef in a flash, its glowing arm raised. It swung at Bayleef, sending her crashing to the ground. She slid along the gym floor but managed to get to her feet almost immediately this time. "Rock Polish again."

"Razor Leaf Bayleef!" yelled Ash. His Pokémon swung her head, once more sending sharpened leaves at Rhyperior.

"Stone Edge!" countered Dirk. The plates on Rhyperior's body hadn't even stopped glowing before it sent numerous jagged rocks at Bayleef. The two attacks met, cancelling each other out in a flurry of impacts. Suddenly Rhyperior was in front of Bayleef, its arm glowing again.

"Look out!" cried Ash but it was too late. The attack struck, sending Bayleef flying. She hit the gravel created by Tauros and Nidoking and rolled through it. She came to a rest on the far side, forcing herself to rise. This time however, Ash had seen what Rhyperior was doing.

The drill Pokémon wasn't running at Bayleef, it was sliding. Rock Polish had increased Rhyperior's speed by making its skin smooth enough to skate over the floor. Ash smiled.

"Bayleef, use Solarbeam!" he ordered. The leaf Pokémon obeyed, gathering light into the leaf on its head. It began to glow with power.

Dirk snorted. "I'm not gonna let you do that Ash," he said. "Drill Run Rhyperior." The large Pokémon charged, sliding towards the grass type as the horn on its head spun as fast as it could. It roared its intent to knock Bayleef out before she could charge her Solarbeam. Then it hit the gravel. It stumbled but managed to catch itself before it fell. Suddenly it could no longer slide across the gym floor.

Ash laughed. It had worked! The gravel had slowed Rhyperior down enough. "Now Bayleef!"

"Bay!" cried the Johto starter as she released the pent up light. A huge beam of energy crashed into Rhyperior and blinded the trainers. When they could see again, Rhyperior was face down in the corner of the battlefield while Bayleef watched it intently.

"Rhyperior!" cried Dirk. With a loud crunching sound Rhyperior planted a large fist into the ground beside it, using that to lever itself up.

"Bayleef, use Sweet Scent and then Solarbeam again!" shouted Ash. Bayleef swung her head twice, releasing a soothing scent of fresh flowers and clean grass that wafted over to Rhyperior. The drill Pokémon stopped trying to get up, its mouth dropping open in a relaxed smile.

"Snap out of it Rhyperior," yelled Dirk. "Get up and use Stone Edge!" Rhyperior frowned as its master's voice got through to it. With a grunt of effort it rose to one knee, then to its feet. Lazily it turned to Bayleef, flinging a handful of rocks at her.

They never reached the grass type.

The rocks were obliterated by a second beam of light. Rhyperior couldn't react as Bayleef's attack struck, sending it soaring out of the ring and into the wall of the gym.

"Rhyperior!"

When the dust cleared Ash could see Rhyperior lying prone on the floor. It wasn't moving. Dirk held out his pokéball and the rock type disappeared in a flash of red light.

"Bay Bay!" announced Bayleef as she tackled Ash to the ground. He laughed and grabbed her neck in a hug, congratulating her for a job well done. Pikachu leapt on her head, adding his own congratulations.

"Ash Ketchum," Ash stopped and looked up. Dirk was right above him. He got up and stood before the older man. The gym leader's grin was gone, replaced by a gentler smile. "Well done," he said, holding out his hand. Ash shook it, feeling something metal pressed into his palm. "You've earned it," Dirk added. Then he turned away. "Now if you'll excuse me I have some work to do."

Ash watched as he walked away and then looked at the badge in his hand. It looked exactly like the Earth badge he had at home. He smiled. "Thanks Dirk."

* * *

"It sounds like a riveting match Ash," said Professor Oak over the video phone. "Are you sure you want to swap your Pokémon already?"

Ash nodded as he placed five pokéballs in the Pokémon Centre's transporter. "I'm going to use a completely different team at the Pewter gym; I want to get a little training in with them."

"Alright Ash," said Professor Oak. He pressed a button on his computer and Ash's pokéballs disappeared. "But if you're going through the Viridian Forest watch out for the Beedrill, they're at their most dangerous at this time of year."

Ash paled as five more pokéballs materialised before him. "I'd forgotten about them," he muttered, replacing the balls on his belt. He shook his head; he'd cross that bridge when he came to it. "Thanks again Professor!"

"Goodbye Ash."

The connection ended and Ash left the Pokémon Centre with a nod and a thank you to Nurse Joy. "What do you think Misty would be like if she were here with us Pikachu?" he asked as they headed north, towards the infamous forest.

Pikachu chattered something about how Misty would be grabbing onto Ash at the sight of every tiny bug Pokémon. Ash laughed, memories of how she'd done just that throughout their journeys going appearing in his mind. "Pikapi pipi chukaa piiika," Pikachu added slyly.

Ash went red. That meant something along the lines of him enjoying it too much. "I would not!" he protested to the mouse Pokémon's chattering laughter. Ash fumed, sometimes it seemed even his best friend was against him.

* * *

**AN: **So what did you guys think of the chapter? What about Dirk? If anyone wants to use him as the Viridian gym leader feel free, you just have to let me know. Now review! You know you want to!


	4. Chapter 4

**Vondrakenhof here.** The next chapter has arrived. Honestly I wasn't expecting this one to be as long as it is but it got away from me. I'm very pleased with the results.

I've got some bad news though. I haven't finished chapter 5 yet. And since I have a crap-ton of course work to do for next week I'm not sure if I'll be able to meet the deadline of next Friday. I'm still going to do my best though. I will get it done.

Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter. And please review!

* * *

**Back Around Again.**

Ash trudged onward down the trail that led deeper into the Viridian Forest. The air was oppressively humid and Ash was sweating so hard he had to wipe it out of his eyes every few minutes. He wondered how it could possibly be this bad when the trees blocked out the sun. Only a few rays of light were actually able to get through the canopy. Pikachu wasn't doing any better than Ash was. He was draped over his master's shoulder, his ears and tail drooping. He was too hot to sleep and too tired to do anything else.

Ash tried in vain to swat away the tiny insects that were swarming around them, miniscule creatures that would land on his skin and take a bite, but every time his hand got anywhere near them they'd just fly away again. The forest really was a miserable place. It was already his second day in the woods and he had no idea how much further he had to go.

"Stupid thing," he muttered, shaking his Pokédex. Whenever he pressed the compass symbol on the screen it came back with the words "Cannot Find Satellite". "What's the point of GPS if you can't use it when you really need it?"

Ash's musings were cut short by a buzzing sound. He froze. The sound was drawing closer. Ash cursed and rushed to the side of the trail. He jumped into the bushes and tried to remain as still as possible. The Beedrill appeared a moment later.

The swarm was dozens strong and every one of the yellow and black Pokémon was clearly agitated as they flew across the trail. Ash could feel his heart pounding against his chest and Pikachu's heart as well from his perch on Ash's shoulder. Innumerable thorns pressed in on him but he didn't dare make a sound, in case the Beedrill heard. His own laboured breathing seemed impossibly loud to him. Ash swallowed a lump in his throat and the sweat on his brow turned cold. He did not want to have a run in with the bug types.

Those Beedrill were the reason Ash couldn't train in the forest. When he trained it usually got loud and that would no doubt bring the Beedrill down on him in moments. He'd already had a close call that morning and another the day before. Ash hadn't even risked a fire the previous night so his and Pikachu's dinner had been cold.

Pikachu was still not happy about that.

Finally the last of the Beedrill had gone and Ash thought it safe enough to emerge. His new jacket was strong enough to stop them but his jeans were being poked through by thorns. He gritted his teeth against the pain as he pulled himself from the bush then he reached back into it to retrieve his hat.

"I'll say this Pikachu," he began while removing thorns from his hat. "It's easier to avoid those bugs when you don't have a screaming red-head clinging to you."

"Pikapi, pikaa chu Pikachupi kaka pi," chattered Pikachu from the base of a tree.

"Shut up," hissed Ash, ramming the hat back on his head. "I do not want her clinging to me!" Pikachu rolled his eyes and chattered something else at his trainer. Ash's eyes went wide and his face went red. "You're a pervert," he muttered. "Seriously, you're worse than Brock." Pikachu's cheeks sparked at this and Ash backed away with his hands held up in silent apology. That had been too far.

"Come on," said Ash. "Let's see if we can get out of-"

"ASH KETCHUM OF PALLET TOWN!" a voice thundered, causing both Ash and Pikachu to jump. Ash turned to find a figure a little shorter than he was staring at him. It was wearing plated armour that was joined to segment faulds at the waist which fell to the knees. The forearms were covered by gauntlets and both hands gripped a sheathed sword at the waist. A kabuto style helmet equipped with a facemask resembling a shiny Gyarados completed the outfit.

Recognition hit Ash like one of Pikachu's Thunderbolts. "Samurai?" he asked. "Samurai is that you?"

"Greetings, Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town," said the young man, thankfully in a more normal tone. "It has been many years since we last met."

"Samurai how are you not melting in that armour?" Ash asked.

"The Samurai does not suffer in heat!" announced Samurai in a loud tone that made Ash wonder whether he was trying to convince himself of the fact. "Nor does he suffer in cold! No rain or wind or snow will slow him!"

"Yeah Samurai that's great," said Ash with a placating gesture. "But keep it down will you? There are tons of Beedrill around here and I'd rather not bring them down on us if I can help it."

"Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town," Samurai repeated, ignoring Ash's warning. "Many years ago, when we were but children, we met honourably upon the field of battle. Will you grant me the honour of doing so again?"

Ash scratched the back of his head, glancing away. "Look, normally I'd be all for a Pokémon battle, but did you not hear me about the Beedrill? If we battle we are going to attract a lot of attention."

Samurai released his grip on his sword and stood up straighter. His eyes narrowed behind his mask. "Are you afraid to engage in battle with me Ash Ketchum?"

"I didn't say that," protested Ash. He didn't like Samurai's tone.

"I am ashamed, Ash Ketchum," said Samurai in a loud voice. "To think, that one such as you would have grown into such a coward."

"Now wait a minute-"

"What happened to you to stain your belly yellow?" Samurai almost shouted. "Where did you lose your liver Ash Ketchum?" Ash gritted his teeth and clenched his fists as Samurai continued to question his courage. Listening to comments about Meowth-blood in his lineage Ash swore he could feel a vein popping on his forehead. Who was this guy to doubt his courage? Had he ever nearly died doing the right thing?

"All right!" Ash shouted, silencing Samurai. He looked around for any Beedrill before unclenching his fists. "All right," he repeated gently. "We'll battle. But can we keep it quiet, please?"

"Very well Ash Ketchum," said Samurai. "This will be a three against three match. There will be no substitutions. Choose your first Pokémon."

Ash turned. "Do you want to field this Pikachu?" he asked. The yellow Pokémon sat against a tree with his front paws crossed. He turned his head away sharply. "Still smarting about that Brock comment huh?" He turned back to Samurai, pulling a pokéball from his belt. Unlike most pokéballs its upper half was mostly blue but with an irregular red strip down the middle. "Totodile, I choose you!"

The white light from the pokéball materialised into Ash's reptilian, bipedal water type Pokémon. Totodile began to dance immediately, hopping from one foot to the other and waving his tiny arms in the air. "Toto, toto, toto-dile!" it rasped.

"Your Totodile is full of enthusiasm," Samurai commented. "Perhaps the Pokémon can compensate for the master's lack." Ash rolled his eyes. He was still leery about having a battle in the middle of a Beedrill infested forest but he wasn't going to let a kid who went around in a suit of armour talk down to him. "Go Butterfree!"

A large purple lepidopteron emerged, as if newly from the cocoon of a Metapod. Ash was struck by the memories of the first Pokémon he'd ever caught, right there in that very forest. Caterpie had grown quickly, evolving into Metapod and again into Butterfree in a matter of days. It had been a faithful companion right up until Ash released it to be with its mate.

"This Butterfree is the descendent of the Metapod with whom you once battled," Samurai informed him proudly. "He has far outstripped his ancestor in power and skill."

_Right, _thought Ash. _It's not your Butterfree. Get a grip._

"Butterfree, use Sleep Powder!" yelled Samurai, seemingly forgetting his agreement to stay quiet. Butterfree swept towards Totodile, a glittering blue powder falling from its wings.

"Totodile," said Ash in a calm voice. "Use Scary Face." Totodile stopped dancing immediately. He snapped his jaws shut, fixing Butterfree with an evil glare. The bug type halted its advance, shaking in the air. "Water Gun."

The big jaw Pokémon inhaled deeply, the yellow band of scales across his chest stretching as his lungs expanded. Totodile exhaled, forcing a stream of water from his mouth. The water shot at Butterfree, crashing into the bug type. Butterfree seemed to resist the strength of the attack for a moment before it was overwhelmed. The lepidopteron flew backwards, crashing into the trunk of a tree. When the Water Gun finally relented Butterfree fell to the ground.

"Butterfree!" cried Samurai. When it was clear that his Pokémon wasn't getting up he recalled it in a beam of red light. "That was a lucky shot!" he snarled at Ash and the, once again, dancing Totodile. "But luck will not help you against this Pokémon! Go, Pinsir!"

The large brown Pokémon appeared, its exoskeleton shining and its pincers flexing. It snapped its horizontal teeth open and closed twice in an attempt to intimidate the water Pokémon before it. Totodile kept dancing.

"Pinsir use X-Scissor!" ordered Samurai. Ash winced at the volume of the trainer's words and cast his gaze around to watch out for any Beedrill. Pinsir leapt at Totodile, the three claws on the end of its long thin arms glowing with a purple-tinted light. It crossed its arms in a downward swing, leaving a bright purple X right where Totodile's head was-

Or had been until Totodile simply side-stepped out of the way. Pinsir glanced at the smiling water type beside it, suddenly vulnerable.

"Totodile," said Ash, his eyes now back on the battle. "Use your new move." Totodile seemed to smirk before opening his jaws wide. Ash watched as Totodile's teeth began to glow with pale blue light then grow to more than twice their normal length. Pinsir roared in pain as the big jaw bit it on the shoulder.

"Pinsir use Vital Throw!" yelled Samurai. His eyes widened behind his mask as Pinsir struggled to move, a thick layer of ice growing over its body from where Totodile had latched on. In mere moments Pinsir was frozen solid, completely encased in ice. Totodile released the stag beetle Pokémon and started to dance again.

"Ice Fang," he muttered, returning his Pokémon. "Do not think my last Pokémon will fall so easily Ash Ketchum," said Samurai. He held his third pokéball before him. "This Pokémon came to me from the forests across the mountains. Avenge our fallen, go!"

Samurai threw the ball and from it emerged a red and black striped Pokémon. It had four yellow legs with purple stripes and two similarly coloured protrusions on its back. Its head sported a white horn and two white mandibles. The Ariados hissed at its opponent.

Pikachu yawned. Ash was similarly unimpressed. Totodile didn't even look like he was paying attention.

Samurai growled, evidently angry that his final Pokémon was being so thoroughly disrespected. "Ariados, Spider Web!" he called. The long leg Pokémon leapt up into the canopy of the trees and a moment later a symmetrically pattern web, seemingly spat whole from the bug type's mouth, fell onto Totodile. The water type struggled for a moment but couldn't move.

"Use Slash," Ash instructed. Totodile raised his claw as much as he could, the tips glowing white. In two swipes he had cut through the webs and the pieces were floating to the ground around him.

"Shadow Sneak!" ordered Samurai. Ash's brow furrowed. He'd never encountered that move before. He watched Ariados expectantly. It didn't move but its purple and black eyes narrowed.

_What is it doing?_ he thought. He was about to dismiss it and order an attack when he saw it. What looked like two of Ariados' legs made entirely out of shadow were emerging from the ground behind Totodile. "Look out!" he cried but it was too late. The legs struck his Pokémon, knocking it down with a thud. The legs retreated into the shadow as Totodile climbed to his feet. "Water Gun!"

The water type spat his stream of water up at Ariados. The bug type skittered out of the way, hanging upside down in the trees. Ash got the impression that if it could Ariados would be sticking its tongue out at Totodile. Ash ordered him to try again and again but each time Ariados dodged the attack. He gritted his teeth.

"Venoshock Ariados!" yelled Samurai. Ariados shot a glob of dark purple liquid at Totodile. Ash could smell the vile poison from where he was standing. If it hit Totodile it wouldn't end well.

"Aim your Water Gun at the ground!" Totodile obeyed immediately, the force of the water sending him straight up. The big jaw Pokémon managed to grab hold of one of the lower hanging branches in the canopy above and pulled himself up onto it. "Slash now!"

Totodile leapt at Ariados, both claws shining white this time. Ariados wasn't able to move fast enough and the water type struck it hard. The bug type crashed to the ground while Totodile landed on all fours. The red Pokémon struggled to its feet.

"Poison Jab," yelled Samurai. Ariados raised one leg. It was shining with the same deep purple colour the Venoshock attack had been. It charged at Totodile but he was too fast. He jumped over Ariados' attack and landed on its back. Without needing any prompting from Ash Totodile bit down on the bug type with another Ice Fang attack. Ariados screeched in pain and then collapsed.

"Good job Totodile," said Ash as his Pokémon started to dance again. He gave him a moment to celebrate before returning him to his Lure Ball. The sound metal clanking made him turn his head. Samurai had fallen to his knees and it was with a shaking hand that he returned his Pokémon.

"Utterly annihilated," he breathed. Ash suddenly felt sorry for the boy. He knew what it was like to be crushed in battle. He wondered briefly if he should have gone easy on him but dismissed that thought almost immediately. He wouldn't have been able to do it without making it extremely obvious and that would be an insult to everyone involved. "WHY?!" Samurai screamed, falling to all fours. Ash's sympathy suddenly turned to panic. "When did I get so weak? How has my rival outstripped my strength by so much? My Pokémon do not deserve such a pathetic trainer!"

Ash rushed over to Samurai, at a loss as to how to console the young man. "Hey, hey, don't talk like that," he tried, pleading to the Legendaries internally. He never had any idea what to do in these situations. "You battled well," he lied.

"I am not fit to call myself Samurai," Samurai announced. His hands suddenly went to the sword at his waist. "I must commit Hara-kiri!"

Ash grabbed his wrists before he could draw the blade. "That is a really bad idea!" he told Samurai firmly. "You can get stronger alongside your Pokémon. They're your friends aren't they? Then live well with them, train together and get stronger! Do you understand me?" Samurai nodded. His eyes were bright. "Good. Now stop wailing otherwise the Beedrill will hear us!" Ash shouted.

Almost immediately the sound of buzzing assaulted their ears. Ash's eyes went wide. A moment later a horde of Beedrill flew through the trees. Ash cursed and dragged Samurai to his feet. "Come on, we have to-"

He was cut off as a Beedrill dived at his face, its large stinger aimed at his eyes. He barely had time to bring his arm up to block the attack.

"PIKA-CHU!" shouted his starter. A split second later there was the sound of lightning tearing the air asunder. Ash looked to see the Beedrill on the ground, blackened by Pikachu's Thunderbolt.

"Let's go Pikachu!" he shouted. "We've got to get out of here!"

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed, striking with an Iron Tail attack at a Beedrill that got too close. The bug type crumpled instantly. Pikachu ran towards Ash and Samurai, his trainer still trying to hurry him. Ash watched as Pikachu's eyes widened. The electric type leapt into the air, a large ball of lightning forming at his tail. With a swing of his tail he sent the Electro Ball attack soaring over Ash's head. Ash followed the attack with his eyes, watching it strike three Beedrill who'd been about to attack from behind at once.

"Pikapi!" cried Pikachu, drawing Ash's attention back to his friend. The remaining Beedrill were surrounding him, diving two or three at a time. Pikachu was so busy dodging he couldn't attack back.

"Pikachu get out of there!" Ash ordered. Pikachu didn't have to think twice. Using Quick Attack to give him speed he shot away from the Beedrill, and off the trail through the woods. The Beedrill pursued, leaving only two behind with Ash and Samurai. Ash ripped a pokéball from his belt, hurling it at the bugs. "Noctowl, use Extrasensory!"

The red and gold Johto Pokémon appeared in a flash of white light and golden sparkles. Noctowl screeched at the Beedrill and its eyes began to glow. The two bug type Pokémon were surrounded by a rainbow of colourful light and were suddenly crashed into the ground, unmoving.

"Good job Noctowl," said Ash, returning the flying type. "Come on, we've got to get Pikachu." He began to chase after Pikachu and the Beedrill. He was stopped by an armoured hand gripping his arm.

"Are you insane?" asked Samurai. "Not far in that direction lays the Beedrill nest. It is folly to approach."

_And you challenged me to a battle here? _thought Ash. "I am not leaving another friend to the Beedrill," he said out loud. "I made that mistake with Metapod. I won't make it again."

Samurai was silent for a moment. With his face covered by the mask it was hard to tell what he was thinking. "Very well," he assented. "But we must approach under the cover of darkness. That is when the Beedrill will be at their least active." He laid his hand on Ash's shoulder. "You must trust your Pikachu to evade them until that time, Ash Ketchum. For now there is nothing else we can do."

Ash grumbled but couldn't find a hole in Samurai's logic. The part of him that hated waiting was raging but he had to agree. "We wait for nightfall then."

* * *

Nightfall didn't take long and apparently Samurai could actually tell when it happened despite the trees of Viridian Forest blocking out all light. Ash attributed it to the fact that the young man seemed to spend most of his life in the Mew-forsaken place.

Like Samurai had said the Beedrill nest wasn't far. The moment Ash saw the first Kakuna hanging from a tree he redoubled his efforts to remain silent. This meant that his pace was slowed to a crawl as he took one careful step after the other. It also meant that he was wincing every time Samurai took a step. The bug loving trainer was copying Ash's movements from behind but each step caused his armour to clank. It was a miracle that none of the Beedrill sleeping in the branches above them awoke.

Maybe a half hour after they'd ventured from the trail the familiar loud buzzing noise greeted their ears. Ash and Samurai instantly froze but the bug Pokémon around them weren't awakening. A moment later Ash heard a sound he'd become very familiar with over the years.

"Chuuuuuu!"

His Pokémon's harsh cry was accompanied by an obvious Thunderbolt. Mere heartbeats later they heard Pikachu again. Ash swallowed the lump in his throat. His best friend was still fighting not far ahead. Though no one else would be able to tell, Ash knew that Pikachu was getting tired. He picked up the pace.

"Be cautious, Ash Ketchum," Samurai warned. Ash ignored him. The buzzing of the Beedrill was getting incredibly loud, Pikachu was just ahead. He pushed through the bushes that pulled at his clothes and ducked the low hanging branches ignorant of the noise he was making. Then he came to the clearing.

It was one of the few spots in the forest Ash had seen where the sky was visible. The moonlight made the trees shine, especially the large oak in the centre. The tree was thick enough that three of Ash holding hands wouldn't be able to reach around the trunk. There was a small hollow at its base. Every few seconds one of the scores of Beedrill would dive for the hollow. They were repulsed by a bolt of lightning.

"Pikachu," breathed Ash. He unclipped a pokéball from his belt. He felt an armoured hand on his shoulder and looked back at Samurai. The bug Pokémon trainer nodded grimly, a silent wish for luck. Ash nodded back and took a deep breath. "I'm coming buddy," he whispered before throwing the pokéball and crashing into the clearing. "Infernape! Flare Blitz!"

The Sinnoh starter, the Pokémon that had once belonged to one of Ash's fiercest rivals, appeared in a flash of white light and was ablaze instantly. Red fire covered every inch of Infernape's body for a moment and then it was suddenly blue, the intense heat rolling off the flame Pokémon in waves. Infernape bent at the knees, twisting his body slightly before he took off like a bullet from a gun. Trails of fire were left in Infernape's wake as he struck down half a dozen Beedrill at once. Then he bound in another direction, attacking again.

Ash ran to the oak tree, ducking beneath panicked bug types, aiming for the hollow. He dropped to his knees, sliding the final distance.

"Pikachu!" he yelled. A weak Thunderbolt shot out of the hollow, barely missing him. "Pikachu, it's okay. It's me," he said, poking his head in the hole.

"Pikapi?" asked Pikachu, obviously extremely weary. He gave a small smile when he saw his friend. "Pikapi." Ash pulled Pikachu from the hollow before his starter could collapse.

"Don't worry, I'm getting you out of here," he said. At least half the Beedrill were down thanks to Infernape and some had fled but there were still enough to cause problems, especially since Infernape was beginning to tire. Using Flare Blitz so much had taken a lot out of him. "We're leaving, Infernape," he called to the fire type. "Give me a couple of Flamethrowers to cover our backs!"

Infernape grinned and panted before sucking in enough air for the attack. The Beedrill were circling around the tree and spying Ash running away with the prey they'd been trying to get at for more than an hour they dived at him. Two plumes of fire stopped them in their tracks and Ash was in the trees again, recalling Infernape and running for his life.

"Quickly!" yelled Samurai, who was suddenly running beside them. "We must reach my cabin, we can take shelter there." Ash let him lead, horribly aware of the swarm not far behind them. Samurai obviously knew these woods like the back of his hand because it wasn't long before the wooden shack that the two boys and Misty had taken shelter in all those years ago came into view. Samurai hurried to unlock the door.

"Hurry up," said Ash as he spied the Beedrill swarm coming their way. They were approaching fast. Swallowing Ash unclipped another pokéball from his belt. The bug types were almost on top of them. Ash drew back his hand to throw only for Samurai to grip his arm and pull him through the doorway. The door slammed behind them. There were several loud thumps as Beedrill impacted against the walls.

"Mew that was close," said Ash, breathing hard. He was doubled over and resting one hand on his knee. The other held the exhausted Pikachu against his chest.

"You have many powerful Pokémon, Ash Ketchum," said Samurai. "That fire type, I have never seen such a creature."

"Infernape's from Sinnoh," Ash answered turning to Samurai. "He's a strong…" He trailed off and narrowed his eyes. Samurai was holding a pokéball. "What is that?"

"My new Beedrill," said Samurai proudly.

Ash felt the vein on his forehead throb again. He grabbed Samurai by the shoulders, pinning him against the wall. "Listen to me. You almost got us all killed today, in fact we're very lucky nobody was hurt. So tomorrow you will lead us to Pewter City to make up for it. Understand?" Samurai nodded. Ash sighed and released him, leaning against the wall himself. "I'm sorry Samurai." He stopped and turned to the other trainer. "What is your name?" he asked. "I can't keep calling you Samurai."

Samurai sighed. He removed the mask from his helmet and Ash noted that his face hadn't really matured much in the years since he'd seen him. "My name is Seán," he said.

"Seán, I'm sorry for snapping at you," said Ash, putting Pikachu down. The electric mouse stretched, tired but happy and still alert. "It's just been a long day."

"I understand," said Seán. "I will lead you to Pewter tomorrow. But it will take more than a day's travel." Ash nodded and petted Pikachu. An awkward silence filled the room. Seán tried to fill it. "So," he began. "Where is your screeching maiden?"

"My what?"

"The loud young lady who had attached herself to you when we first met," Seán clarified. "Your red-headed paramour."

"Oh, you mean Misty," said Ash, a smile brightening his face for a moment. It left quickly though. "She doesn't travel with me anymore. She's the Cerulean City gym leader now." Ash's brow furrowed. "Hey, what does paramour mean?"

"Pikapi," said Pikachu, attracting their attention. He sat upright and when he was sure his trainer was looking Pikachu wrapped his arms around himself and made the Pikachu equivalent of kissing noises. Ash flushed red.

"I don't like her like that!" he protested to the sound of both his best friend's and Seán's laughter.

* * *

**AN:** Well what did you think? You should let me know in a review, really.

I was so tempted to have Seán call Misty Ash's screaming wench instead of screeching maiden. Anyone who has read Virgo Writer's "Ash: The Last Stand xHistoryx" will know why. And why did I give him the name Seán? Because it's as far away from a Samurai name as possible. Also it's my cousin's name and he is a giant Japanophile.


	5. Chapter 5

**Vondrakenhof here. **What am I doing? It's nearly four in the morning here and I'm up posting this. I only just finished it. I must be mad. Or I just want to wake up to reviews. Anyway, this chapter was a pain to write. Fun fact: Pokémon battles are hard. It is also the longest chapter I have ever written. For anything. These things just keep getting longer. That's a good thing right?

Enjoy and Review!

* * *

**Back Around Again.**

"Well Ash Ketchum," said Seán as he emerged from the Viridian Forest. "There is Pewter City."

Ash and Pikachu breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Brock's home town. The grey city spread out at the bottom of the hill, somehow cheerful in the sunlight despite its colouration. It was a welcome sight. The Viridian Forest had gotten on their last nerves and, honestly, so had Seán. While Ash had forgiven him Pikachu had not. The electric mouse had acted grumpy and surly around the young trainer but Seán hadn't noticed. Pikachu's attitude aside Seán's overly formal way of speaking was getting to Ash. Having his full name said constantly put him in mind of being scolded by his mother.

Or Misty.

"This is where I leave you," said Seán. "I must return to my cabin in order to collect my possessions."

"Are you planning on going somewhere Seán?" asked Ash.

"I believe I will see the world, as you have Ash Ketchum," Seán answered, looking past Pewter City, to the mountains in the north. "Perhaps I will go to Sinnoh. I wish to meet this Aaron of whom you spoke." Seán's eyes seemed to shine at the thought of an Elite Four member who used bug types. "I wish to become stronger."

Ash smiled. Seán had spent too long in the Viridian Forest. He held out his hand. "Good luck Seán."

Seán grabbed his forearm, gripping hard. Ash tried to ignore how uncomfortable it was with Seán's armour. "And to you as well, Ash Ketchum," he said. He released Ash's arm and turned away, walking back into the woods. Ash turned back to the city.

"Come on Pikachu," he said. "Let's go to the Pokémon Centre before we hit the gym."

* * *

"Pikapi," muttered Pikachu as he and Ash made their way to the gym. "Pika ka cha pipi chuka?"

Ash paused for a moment. Pikachu was right. In the past whenever he got to a city with a gym he'd run straight there, no matter how long he'd been travelling for. This time he'd gone to the Pokémon Centre to have a shower. Ash had to admit it felt really good to wash away the feeling of the Viridian Forest.

"I guess I'm just growing up," he said at last, moving again. He missed the incredulous look on his partner's face. They rounded a corner to find a familiar building. Ash smiled. "This place hasn't changed at all."

The Pewter Gym hadn't. It still bore the same grey stone front. Ash remembered being intimidated by it all those years ago when he came to win his first gym badge. Well, win was stretching the truth a bit. Misty would no doubt say that he got it out of pity.

_Ah well, _thought Ash. _I'm going to win this one fair and square._ He pushed open the gym door, peering into the darkness. "Hello?" he called out as he stepped inside. "Is anybody home?" The door shut behind him, cutting off the light. An intense feeling of déjà vu settled on Ash.

"Pika-Chu?" shouted Pikachu.

"Who goes there?" a voice questioned from the darkness. Ash rolled his eyes. This had definitely happened before.

"You know who I am Forrest," he answered, crossing his arms. The lights in the gym snapped on with an audible hum.

"Ash, is that you?" a boy standing on a raised platform at the end of the gym asked. He was a couple of years younger and a head shorter than Ash and, if it weren't for the lighter skin, he would have looked identical to his older brother Brock.

"Hey Forrest," Ash greeted as the gym leader walked towards him. "Keeping up the dramatics I see. It probably would have worked better if Brock hadn't done the same thing when I first came here."

Forrest shrugged. "It's always fun to unnerve the newbies," he said with a smile before trading grips with Ash. "Uh, you do know that Brock's rooming at Celadon University right?"

Ash laughed. "Yeah I know," he assured the rock type trainer. "I'll pay him a visit when I get there." He looked around. "Where is everybody?"

"Salvadore and Yolanda are on their journeys," Forrest informed him. "Mom's taken Cindy, Suzie and Timmy shopping. And Dad's busy with his rock sculptures," he finished with a roll of his eyes. "But Tommy and the twins should be around here somewhere."

A loud bang resounded from behind the door at the far end of the gym, followed by the sound of quick footsteps. "Speak of the dark types," Forrest muttered.

The door slammed open, revealing two tiny laughing children who bore the Slate family resemblance racing from the corridor connecting the gym to the family house. The pair were almost indistinguishable save for the one in blue having darker skin than the other and the one in pink having bright brown hair instead of the dull brown of her brother. There was silence for a moment when they spied Ash and Forrest. Then they shattered it.

"Pikachu!" they screamed, charging across the gym.

"Billy, Tilly!" snapped Forrest. "What have I told you about running in the gym?" The twins ignored him.

"Mister, can we play with your Pikachu?" the twin in blue, Billy, asked Ash. The trainer shared a glance with his partner, who didn't look too enthusiastic.

"Guys, you remember Ash right?" asked Forrest, hand to his forehead.

"Yeah, yeah," said one of the twins, each nodding their head. "You're Brock's friend," continued the other. "Can we _please_ play with Pikachu?" they finished in chorus. Ash looked at Pikachu again. The mouse Pokémon gave a resigned sigh before leaping from his shoulder to the sudden cheers of Billy and Tilly.

"Be gentle," warned Ash as the twins chased his friend around the gym. He turned back to Forrest. "Those two sure have grown."

"Well it's been two years since you've seen them," said Forrest. "So what can I do for you Ash? Last I heard you were still in Unova."

"I only got back last month," said Ash. "I had a great time but I have to admit, it's good to be home."

"Pikapi!" interrupted Pikachu. Ash turned to find his loyal partner being used in a tug-of-war between Billy and Tilly.

"Guys, don't hurt him!" yelled Forrest. The twins paid him no heed, pulling harder on the increasingly distressed Pikachu. Ash saw the warning signs: the eyes clenched shut, the tensed tail. And of course the sparking cheeks were a dead giveaway.

"Pikachu, don't hurt them!" he shouted, diving towards the trio.

"Piii..." The twins gritted their teeth, seemingly trying to rip Pikachu's arms off.

"Kaaa…" Pikachu's fur stood on end and static electricity sparked from the children's clothes.

"CHU!" Pikachu's Thunderbolt was released just as Ash managed to grab him and pull him from the grips of the twins. He screamed, electricity flowing through him and into the ground. He collapsed the moment the attack stopped.

"That hasn't happened for a while, has it Pikachu?" Ash asked in a shaky voice. He vaguely registered Forrest ordering the twins to their rooms.

"Pikapi…"

"I'm so sorry Ash," said Forrest, reaching down to help him up. "I should have chased those two troublemakers from the gym."

"Don't sweat it," Ash rasped. He brushed himself off, so used to Pikachu's power that it hardly took any time to recover. "Okay, I'm ready."

Forrest furrowed his brow. "Ready for what?" he asked.

"For the reason I came here," answered Ash with a wide grin. "I challenge you to a gym battle."

Forrest looked surprised for a moment before he gave a smile to match Ash's. "You're on!" he laughed, turning away and walking towards the other end of the gym. "Tommy!"

Forrest's brother didn't answer. Instead, motors whirred into life. The panels on the gym walls rose, revealing the familiar rock covered battlefield. Ash and Pikachu took several quick steps back onto the trainer's square as the two halves slid together. They watched Forrest step onto the square at his end just before the battlefield crushed his foot.

"This is a match between the gym leader Forrest and Ash from Pallet Town," announced a voice from above. Ash looked up to see Tommy standing on the catwalk above the gym floor. He was leaning over the railing, looking down at the battlefield. "Each participant may use two Pokémon," he continued. "The challenger may substitute at any time. Send out your first Pokémon."

Ash and Forrest acted at the same time. The two trainers enlarged their pokéballs and cast them onto the arena.

"Go!"

A round grey Pokémon materialised at Forrest's end. It was craggy and flexed its four arms as it stood up. In front of Ash a creature of dark blue stone appeared. Its body was angular and seven red crystals grew on its body. Its three legs ended in similar crystals and the closest thing it had to a face was the two holes either side of a central crest.

"Is that…" Forrest began, shaking his head. "What is that?"

"It's a Boldore," answered Ash. "I caught it as a Roggenrola in Unova. Is that Brock's Geodude?"

Forrest nodded. "Are you ready Ash?"

"Ready."

"Begin!" shouted Tommy.

"Graveler, Stealth Rock," Forrest ordered. The rock type closed its eyes and concentrated. Six spheres of white light shot from its body and hung over the battlefield. One after the other the lights coalesced into large boulders before crashing down onto the arena.

"Boldore use Rock Blast!" yelled Ash. The crest atop Boldore's body shone with silvery white light before projections of stone shot from it. Four of the attacks struck Graveler in quick succession. The rock Pokémon staggered back.

"Bulldoze Graveler," shouted Forrest. The ground type wasted no time in charging.

"Wait for it," Ash instructed. Boldore stood unmoving as Graveler bore down on it. It was ten feet away. Five feet. Three. Two. "Rock Smash!"

"Boldore raised one of its forelimbs, the red crystal glowing harshly. It swung just as Graveler came into range, striking it across the face. The Bulldoze attack was stopped in its tracks and Graveler rolled away, crashing hard into a rock.

"Don't give up, use Magnitude!" barked Forrest. Using its four arms Graveler pulled itself out of the ruins of the rock it had collided with. It glared at Boldore before jumping high into the air, higher than it should have been able to. It came down with a crunch and the whole gym seemed to shake. Ash had to fight to stay standing and he could see Tommy gripping to the railing above. Boldore's legs gave out from beneath it, leaving the ore Pokémon splayed out on the battlefield.

When the attack passed Forrest and Graveler shared a smirk. It faltered when Boldore forced itself to stand back up.

_The only reason Boldore was able to endure that attack was because of Sturdy, _thought Ash as his Pokémon finally got to its feet. He knew he had to end this fast. "Flash Cannon Boldore!"

Boldore's eyes glowed with bright light. Ash heard Forrest trying to warn Graveler but it was too late. A beam of silvery light shot from Boldore and engulfed Graveler, blinding the trainers. When Ah could see again Graveler was on its back, unconscious.

"Graveler is unable to battle," announced Tommy. "Boldore is the winner."

Graveler disappeared in a ray of red light. Forrest thanked it before replacing the pokéball on his belt. He then threw another onto the battlefield. "Let's go Steelix!"

The giant iron snake Pokémon appeared. Its segmented body gleamed under the gym lights and rocks crumbled beneath it as it writhed in place. Steelix let out a roar and Boldore scuttled back a few steps.

"I had a feeling I'd be seeing Steelix again," Ash muttered to himself. He heard Tommy resume the match and ordered Boldore to use another Rock Smash attack.

"Iron Tail Steelix," said Forrest. Boldore only managed a few steps before Steelix's shining metal tail crashed into it from the side. The rock type flew through the air and collided with the gym wall before falling to the floor half a second later.

Ash didn't wait for Tommy's announcement before returning his Pokémon. "Thanks Boldore," he said. "You did great." He looked up at Forrest who was just visible behind Steelix. "Brock's Pokémon have gotten really strong in your care."

Forrest shrugged. "He did a great job raising them," he said. "I just gave them more battles."

"It shows," said Ash. He took out another pokéball. "How about we finish this one? Go, Totodile!" he finished, throwing the lure ball onto the field.

The big jaw Pokémon materialised in a flash, dancing as always. He didn't notice the half dozen rocks rushing at him until they struck, cutting the dance off early. "Totodile!" shouted Ash. "Damn. I forgot about Stealth Rock."

The rocks retreated and Totodile shook himself. The water type narrowed his eyes and glared at Steelix. The much larger Pokémon was unaffected. Neither Pokémon moved as they awaited their masters' commands.

"Resume the match," shouted Tommy.

"Double-Edge Steelix!" ordered Forrest. The steel type coiled its long, serpentine body before springing at its tiny opponent. Ash didn't hesitate.

"Totodile, jump!" he yelled. The little blue reptile followed the order without question. He leapt into the air just as Steelix's head crushed the spot he'd been standing on. Totodile landed on the steel types head before jumping again as Ash ordered a Water Gun attack. He turned in the air, firing the attack straight down. Steelix roared in pain and discomfort.

"Ice Fang!" shouted Ash. Totodile landed back on Steelix and bounded from one segment of its body to the next until he reached the iron snake Pokémon's head. His teeth infused with cold power, the big jaw Pokémon bit down on the joint between Steelix's head and neck. The steel type began to thrash, desperate to lose its unwanted passenger.

"Use Screech to get him off!" Forrest ordered. Steelix stopped thrashing instantly. It opened its massive mouth and released a high pitched sound that should have been impossible for such a large creature. Ash and Pikachu had to cover their ears against the noise. He could see Totodile hanging on valiantly with shut eyes. Finally, despite the water type's best efforts, he had to let go.

And Steelix wasted no time in battering him with its tail.

"Totodile!" cried Ash. He watched as his Pokémon bounced off two boulders before falling to the ground. Ash held his breath, fearing he would repeat his first gym loss. Then Totodile climbed to all fours, giving Steelix his best Scary Face. "Water Gun!"

"Dragon Breath!"

Totodile let loose another stream of water just as Steelix blasted a plume of green fire at him. The two attacks met in the middle of the battlefield, and kept going. The Dragon Breath flowed over Totodile while the Water Gun hit Steelix in the face. Both Pokémon cried out in pain, cutting their attacks off. Steelix was the first to recover but as Totodile was getting up Ash noticed something was off.

The water type's body was covered in sparks.

"Great, he's paralysed!" yelled Forrest. "Finish him off with another Iron Tail!" Steelix surged forward, bringing its gleaming tail down overhead. Ash cried out, trying to get Totodile to dodge, to move, to do something. But it was no good. Totodile couldn't move. The steel attack came down with a sickening crunch.

"Totodile!" shouted Ash. Steelix moved and there was the water type, lying face down among the broken stones of the battlefield. "Totodile?"

"Chapichuka?" asked Pikachu.

Totodile didn't move. Tommy was calling it. "Totodile is unable-"

"To. To. To. To." Three humans and two Pokémon stared, disbelieving, as Totodile pushed itself unsteadily to his feet, sparks still playing across his scales. "Di, dile."

"That Pokémon doesn't know when to quit," muttered Forrest. Then he shook his head and smiled. "Of course he doesn't, he's one of Ash's. Steelix, end this with another Double-Edge!"

"Totodile," the big jaw Pokémon rasped, watching the steel behemoth bare down on him. And then he attacked.

This was no mere stream of water. This was no pathetic Water Gun. This was a torrent, a geyser of fury fuelled water. The attack stopped Steelix dead. It roared in pain and frustration. It tried to press on, to fight against the tide.

It lost. Totodile was pushing it back.

"Hydro Pump," whispered Ash in awe. He knew this attack; he had seen it many times before. His Squirtle, Oshawott and Palpitoad had all used it. But none of them had ever matched the sheer volume of water coming from Totodile's mouth at that moment.

Steelix fell backwards, its metal body destroying the rocks beneath. Only then did Totodile cease the barrage of liquid. Ash and Forrest waited with bated breath.

"Steelix is unable to battle," announced Tommy. "Therefore for the winner of this match is Ash, from Pallet Town!"

Totodile sagged, falling on its tail. Ash and Pikachu ran up to him, smiling. "That was awesome Totodile!" said Ash. The water type gave a weak grin and raised his arms in an attempt to dance. Ash scratched the scales on his head. "You deserve a long rest." Totodile closed his eyes as he disappeared back inside the lure ball.

"Well done Ash," said Forrest, who had walked up to him. He held out a shining grey badge and smiled. "You won."

"Thanks," he said, taking the badge from the leader. "It was fun!"

"It was a great battle." Ash and Forrest jumped, turning to the gym door and the speaker. Flint stood there grinning at the two and looking like any one of his sons about thirty or forty years later. "You fought well son," he told Forrest. "And you Ash, you've gotten a lot stronger," he said. "If I didn't know better I'd never have guessed you were the little kid who overcharged his Pikachu to beat Brock."

"It worked didn't it?" asked Ash, scratching the back of his head. "Sort of."

Flint laughed and Forrest was trying to hide a grin. "Will you stay for dinner? Lola's making curry."

Ash Ketchum was being offered free food. There was only one answer. "Of course!"

* * *

"… And it's clear to everyone, even _me_," said Ash some point after dinner. The Slate family had asked for a few stories about Brock that had happened during his travels. "That despite Holly's apparent "no interest" in younger men, she's falling for him. The more Brock and her battled the more obvious it was. And for once Brock is playing it cool. No really," he added seeing disbelieving faces around the dinner table. "He was being smooth. You know, for Brock.

"Then they came up against me and Paul. Staravia and Torterra against Croagunk and Farfetch'd," Ash shook his head at this. "The only reason we won that match was because Paul's Torterra is a monster. He wasn't interested in teamwork at all." He sighed. "Anyway, after the match Brock goes looking for Holly, ready to make his move." He leaned in and the Slates, apart from Billy and Tilly who were asleep in their chairs, mimicked him. "But she's gone! Gone to become a better trainer for him!" There was a chorus of "Aww man"'s and "Poor boy"'s around the table. "I swear Brock has the worst luck when it comes to women. If it's not Misty, Max or Croagunk holding him back it's something like that."

"I think I'm going to have to talk to that boy about his approach next time I see him," said Flint.

"Don't embarrass him whatever you do," warned Lola.

"I won't," Flint protested as he got up. He picked the sleeping twins up out of their chairs. "I better put these two to bed."

Tommy, Cindy, Suzie and Timmy all got up and began clearing plates from the table. Ash stood to help but his plate had already been whisked away. "I better get going," he said, holding his arm out for Pikachu to climb. "I'm heading to Mount Moon tomorrow."

Suzie nearly dropped the plates she was carrying. "Mount Moon? But that place is scary."

Ash laughed. "I'll be fine," he said. "I managed to make it through when I was ten, I'm sure it'll be cinch now." Pikachu chattered something at him. "Yes I know I had Misty and Brock with me back then. We'll be through that rock in no time." Pikachu muttered something else. Ash sighed and turned to Lola. "Thanks again for dinner Mrs Slate," he said. "Now I know where Brock gets his cooking skills."

"You're very welcome dear," she replied.

"I'll walk you out," said Forrest. The two left the dining room and went through the hall to the gym. "You know," Forrest began as they entered the gym, the broken battlefield still out. "I kind of feel jealous of Brock sometimes. Going off and travelling the world to become stronger." He caught the look Ash was giving him. "Don't get me wrong I love the gym I just wish I could go somewhere wild to train, maybe catch some new rock types."

"Well why don't you?" Ash asked. Forrest didn't reply. "Ask your Dad to take over again for a few months and head to, I don't know, Mount Silver or somewhere."

"Maybe," said Forrest. "I'll ask him someday. Maybe with that sort of training I can become the best rock type gym leader there is!"

"That's the spirit," Ash encouraged as Forrest opened the door to the Pewter City night. He stepped through and turned back, holding out his hand. "It was great to see you again Forrest."

Forrest shook it. "You too Ash. Good luck." He closed the door and Ash and Pikachu turned to head for the Pokémon Centre.

* * *

Ash awoke as the sunlight came in through the Pokémon Centre window. He raised his arm to block the light, rolling over. He didn't want to get up. He glanced at the clock on the wall it was only-

He shot up. It was nearly noon! He'd slept in. Why hadn't Pikachu woken him? He glanced at the electric mouse still sleeping at the foot of the bed.

_Oh right, _thought Ash. _All that food last night nearly knocked him out._ Hesitantly he poked his friend.

"Pikachu," he hissed. "Wake up! We should have left hours ago."

"Pikapi," his starter whined without opening his eyes. Ash narrowed his eyes.

"Fine," he muttered, throwing on his clothes. "I'll carry you but you'd better wake up soon." He picked his friend up, cradling him with one arm while he slung his backpack onto his shoulder. He hopped out the room door trying to pull one of his sneakers on.

"Hey Nurse Joy," said Ash as he reached the front desk.

"Good morning Ash," the pink haired lady said in her usual cheerful voice. "I was expecting you to be up earlier."

"So was I," Ash admitted. "How are my Pokémon doing?"

"They're fine," she told him handing him his lure ball and regular pokéball. "Totodile was just exhausted and Boldore was right as rain in no time."

Ash thanked her, clipping the balls to his belt. He groaned, thinking about what he had to do over the next few days. "I am not looking forward to crossing Mount Moon," he muttered to himself.

"Oh I don't blame you," said Joy, thinking he'd spoken to her. "It's a shame we don't have a road through it, or even a balloon service so that we could fly to Cerulean City."

Ash froze, that word resonating in his head.

_Fly._

"Nurse Joy you are a genius!" he exclaimed before racing to the phones, leaving a very confused nurse behind. He reached the nearest videophone and punched in a number he knew by heart.

"Ash?" asked Professor Oak a moment later. "What can I do for you?"

"I need to change my team Professor," explain Ash. He then told him who he wanted.

"Are you sure Ash?" Oak asked. "That's a very unusual team."

"Yeah I'm trying something new."

"All right," said the Professor. "Put your pokéballs in the transporter and I'll send them to you." Ash did as instructed; watching four of his Pokémon disappear in a flash of light. Five minutes later four pokéballs materialised in the transporter. Ash thanked the Professor and terminated the call.

"Come on Pikachu," he said to his now awake friend before going outside into the noon light, heading east. It didn't take long before they were past the city limits, with trees on either side of the path.

"This is a good spot," Ash said to himself. He plucked his pokéballs from his belt, throwing them into the air and releasing the occupants. Noctowl, his shiny bird from Johto appeared before him. Swellow, the red, white and blue swallow Pokémon from Hoenn swooped up into the before coming back down again. Staraptor, the brown predator from Sinnoh stood calmly on the path. Unfezant, the grey proud Pokémon from Unova flew around in circles. And the odd one out, Leavanny, the bug and grass type, stood beside Ash.

"Okay, listen up," announced Ash. He pointed at Mount Moon. "See that mountain? I want to fly over it to get to the city on the other side. Staraptor, you're the biggest, you think you can carry me?" Staraptor nodded his head. Ash smiled. "Leavanny I need you to make a saddle and tie me to Staraptor. I'd like the rest of you to keep an eye on us while we're in the air." There was a chorus of caws while Leavanny went in search of leaves for the saddle. Ash walked up to Staraptor and put his hand on his head. "Thanks for doing this Staraptor."

Staraptor just crooned and nuzzled his head against Ash.

It took half an hour but eventually Leavanny had fashioned a stirrup out of leaves and sewn it together with his String Shot. He'd used more String Shot to tie it to Staraptor and then to tie Ash to it and the flying type. Ash thanked the bug type and then returned him to his pokéball. He checked that Pikachu was okay, tucked in to his chest and held there by his jacket. "All right Staraptor, let's go."

Ash was nervous as Staraptor took off, mainly because the Sinnoh native was so much smaller than Pidgeot. He could feel every flap of his wings come up through his arms and brush against his leg. The flight was slow with the extra weight but Staraptor soon picked up speed. The other flying types soared around them, watching everything. Eventually Ash was able to relax and enjoy the scenery.

There was so much green. Everywhere he looked all Ash could see were the tops of trees.. Most of them were pines and ferns, but the occasional autumn pallet of a deciduous tree appeared here and there . More yellow than brown just yet. The only break in the trees was the looming mountain ahead. It rose out of the trees like some cartoon bump emerging from a character's hair. Ash remembered passing through it years ago with Misty, Brock and a crazy scientist.

_I wonder if he's still with the Clefairy, _thought Ash. He shook the memory clear, looking around once more. _It really is incredible up here._

It took roughly an hour from take-off for Staraptor to fly over the peak of Mount Moon. The flying type was tiring now, but Ash knew that the downward glide to Cerulean would take a lot less energy than the climb he'd just done. In the distance Ash spotted the city.

"There it is!" he shouted, his voice made thin by the altitude. "We're almost there Staraptor." The predator Pokémon relaxed, spreading his wings to catch the air. They were moving pretty fast now and Ash couldn't help but revel in it.

This was more like riding Pidgeot, the speed, the adrenaline. It was like a good battle, making his blood sing. They were over the forests again already and Ash threw his hands in the air, screaming his elation for the world to hear. Then the wind tore his hat from his head and he had to reach back to grab it by the brim before it was lost.

He felt more than heard the tearing of Leavanny's String Shot.

"Oh crap."

Ash fell, screaming. His only thought was to curl in on himself in an attempt to save Pikachu. He was falling, nothing but empty air around him when he hit something too soon. He was flipped in the air and saw a flash of blue before Swellow righted itself. Suddenly there was grey beneath him and Ash could feel feathers as Unfezant tried to slow his fall and then he was tumbling again. There was a brief glimpse of red and Ash knew that Noctowl had followed the others' example.

It wasn't going to work, he was falling too fast and the trees were right there.

And suddenly there was brown beneath him and he struck hard. He bounced into the trees crashing against trunks and branches. His face was scratched and he knew that his back would be one giant bruise and then the ground was right in front of him.

Ash threw his left hand out in front of him to break the fall, his right arm protecting Pikachu. He hit the ground and it felt like his wrist and knees were on fire but as he rolled over onto his back he knew he was alive. He lay there, for a minute or an hour he didn't know, listening to the blood flow through his ears before the weak cries of a bird reached him. He turned his head.

Not thirty feet away Staraptor was splayed in the dirt. Ignoring the fact that everything hurt, Ash got to his feet and rushed to his Pokémon's side. He had to swallow bile when he saw that Staraptor's wing was bent back in an unnatural way.

"Everything's going to be all right Staraptor," he said. Pikachu crawled out of Ash's jacket and chattered something at the flying type. Ash couldn't translate it right then. The pain was blurring his vision. He recalled Staraptor to his ball and looked up to see the other flyers hovering above them. "Can you find a road?"

Noctowl landed on a branch and pointed with its wing. They already had. Swellow led the way and it wasn't long before Ash came across a path. He thanked his friends and returned them to their balls too.

Ash didn't know how much time had passed. He was busy trying to ignore the worried looks from Pikachu. He knew he didn't have far to go when he came across the sign for Cerulean City. It still bore the words: "Gary was here. Ash is a Loser."

As he limped past Ash couldn't help but agree with the sign.

* * *

**AN: **Not sure I liked that last bit. Tell me what you think won't you? Hopefully next I won't be up to ridiculous hours finishing Chapter 6. Still an update next Friday is the goal. I'm off to bed.


	6. Chapter 6

**Vondrakenhof here. **I'm a bit late with this one but it is still Friday so it's all good. My course assignments are getting on top of me (freaking lab reports) and Ireland is currently experiencing a heat wave so it is too hot to work. But I managed to get it done today. Thankfully.

I'm not sure if I'll be able to get the next chapter up by next Friday. I'll try but more than likely the next update will be two weeks from now. Sorry.

This week this story reached sixty four followers. That means it is my most followed story on this site. That makes me absurdly happy. So let's see if we can't break some more of my records with this story. It's already the longest by word count. Which is awesome.

Anyway, here's chapter six! Enjoy and please review!

* * *

**Back Around Again.**

Ash limped into the Pokémon Centre, clutching his injured wrist. Pikachu sat perched on his shoulder, murmuring soothing sounds in his ear. The clean white lobby was a stark contrast to the young trainer. Ash's face was covered in scratches, none of them actually bleeding. The knees of his jeans had been torn and the skin beneath had broken. His jacket had survived intact, but it was covered in green and brown stains. The Nurse Joy on duty looked up from her paperwork at the front desk.

"My goodness!" she gasped, rising from her seat. "What happened?"

"Please Nurse Joy," said Ash as she reached him. With a shaking hand he plucked a pokéball from his belt. "It's my Staraptor. He's hurt and," he swallowed, "and there's something wrong with his wing."

Nurse Joy took the pokéball from him and nodded with a determined expression on her face. "Chansey," she called. A round pink Pokémon burst through the doors to the theatre. A pale egg sat in a pouch on its stomach and it wore a nurse's cap. As Chansey took the pokéball from Nurse Joy Ash realised that he hadn't really paid any attention to any of the egg Pokémon since returning from Unova. It was rather comforting to know that Staraptor would be taken care of by the familiar Chansey instead of the strange Audino.

"Now let's have a look at you," said Nurse Joy as Chansey took Staraptor back through the doors to the treatment area. Ash wondered why she wasn't following before what she said sank in.

"Nurse Joy, please just take care of Staraptor," he begged. "I'm fine; you don't need- ah, ah, ah!"

He was cut off as Nurse Joy took hold of his injured wrist. The pain shot up his arm, returning full force.

"I thought so," said Joy. She pointed at the chair behind the front desk. "Sit down there and take your coat off."

"But Staraptor-" Ash tried to protest.

"Your Pokémon will be perfectly fine in Chansey's care," Nurse Joy assured him. Her face went stern. "You will not do it any good in your state. Your injuries need to be treated too."

"Pikapi," interjected Pikachu before Ash could argue again. The boy looked at his starter. Pikachu was staring him in the eye, silently pleading with him. Ash sighed and gave in. He shrugged out of his jacket, being careful of his left wrist. He sat down as Nurse Joy pulled a first-aid kit from a drawer in the desk.

"So tell me what happened," she said, opening the kit. Ash did, telling her about his plan to avoid Mount Moon and how Leavanny had made a saddle for Staraptor. He told her how he'd fallen and how his four flying types had saved his life.

"You're very lucky," said Nurse Joy, ignoring Ash's flinches as she cleaned his cuts with antiseptic. "Why were you in such a hurry to get here?"

"I'm visiting the gym," he answered. He winced as Nurse Joy removed his glove and began to probe his now swollen wrist with her fingers.

"A challenger huh?" she asked, testing how the wrist bent. "I should warn you; Misty won't go down easy."

Ash snorted. "Of course not. Misty never makes anything easy."

"Oh? You know her?" asked Joy, looking up from her work.

"We're friends," said Ash, simply.

"Pikapi chaa Pikachupi," added Pikachu from his spot on the desk. Ash flushed red and told him to shut up.

"Wait, Pikachu?" murmured Nurse Joy, looking back and forth between trainer and Pokémon. "Is your name Ash?"

"Uh, yeah," he said. "Ash Ketchum. How did you know?"

Joy didn't answer, instead she stood up quickly. "Excuse me for a moment. I have to make a phone call." She headed for her office.

Ash stared at her confused for a moment before it clicked. "Wait, you're not calling who I think you're calling, are you?" he called after her. "Really that's not necessary!" Nurse Joy shut the office door behind her. Ash sighed and turned back to Pikachu.

"I am so dead."

* * *

After Nurse Joy came back Ash figured he had ten minutes left to live before his best friend in the whole world came stomping in through the Pokémon Centre doors. He was wrong.

It only took five minutes.

"Ash Ketchum!" Misty roared as she spotted him. She was wearing a yellow sleeveless hoodie and blue denim shorts kept up with a white belt adorned with pokéballs. Her bright red hair was tied up in her signature side ponytail. Her eyes, usually the colour of a calm sea, looked as if a storm was raging and her teeth were bared in a vicious growl.

Ash was more worried about her clenched fists. "H-hey, Misty," he said weakly, standing up and swallowing back his fear as she rounded the desk and got in his face.

"Don't you "Hey Misty" me, Ketchum," she ordered, prodding his chest with her finger. "You didn't even tell me you were coming and I get a call from Nurse Joy telling me you nearly killed yourself flying here on Staraptor? What in Suicune's name were you thinking?"

Misty ended her tirade by pulling her hand back to give Ash a smack on the head, like she often did when they travelled together. Ash, with automatic reflexes that had never gone away in the time that they'd been apart, raised his arm to block it.

His injured arm.

Misty struck, and Ash screamed and cursed through clenched teeth.

"Misty, go easy on him," admonished Nurse Joy. "His wrist is sprained." She took the injured wrist in hand and began to wrap it in a bandage. "Don't use this hand for forty eight hours," she instructed. She handed him an ice pack she'd retrieved before Misty had arrived. "Keep this on the injury for maybe thirty minutes every four hours until the pain stops. And keep your wrist above your heart as much as you can, especially when you sleep."

"How long will it take to heal?" Ash asked, holding the ice pack to his wrist. He hoped that this injury didn't hold up his journey.

"It might be a few weeks, but it's not a serious sprain," she told him. "It could have been a lot worse."

"He deserves worse," growled Misty. Ash shot her a hurt look but then he remembered Staraptor and shame filled him.

"Now Misty, you should be nice to your boyfriend," said Nurse Joy innocently. That snapped him out of it.

"He's/I'm not my/her boyfriend!" he and Misty shouted together. Nurse Joy held her hands up in surrender, wide eyed.

"Ka chu kapi cha," said Pikachu. Ash swiped at him with his good hand and missed.

"Shut up," he growled. It was a poor imitation of Misty's.

"What did he say Ash?" asked Misty with a raised eyebrow. Ash thanked the legendary birds that she couldn't understand Pikachu's speech.

"Nothing, he said nothing!" he lied wanting to throttle his little rat for his comment. _I do not want to be her boyfriend_, he thought. He needed a distraction. "Can I go see Staraptor now Nurse Joy?"

"Of course," the nurse replied, leading Ash, Misty and Pikachu through the doors to the treatment centre. "Chansey should have completed the X-ray by now. Ah here she is," she finished, seeing Chansey come out through a door to one of the operating theatres. The egg Pokémon handed the Nurse a large sheet of black film. She held it up to the light and inspected the image closely.

"Is he going to be okay?" asked Ash.

Nurse Joy nodded. "Yes I believe he will," she told him. "It was a clean break. We'll have to bandage his wing and tie it close to his body. And I'd like to keep him overnight for observation. Just in case of complications. He definitely won't be flying for a few weeks." Joy turned to Ash and pointed a finger at him. "And no battling for at least two months," she ordered.

Ash swallowed. "Yes ma'am," he replied. Were all the women in Cerulean City intimidating? "Can I, can I see him?"

Nurse Joy's expression softened. She nodded and pushed open the door to the theatre Chansey had come out of. Ash walked in, leaving Pikachu with Misty, who promptly cuddled the electric type in greeting. Staraptor was laid out on the table. Ash watched as the flying types back rose and fell in time with its breathing. He walked around the table to his friend's head and laid a hand on it.

Staraptor opened an eye and let out a weak cry.

"Hey buddy," said Ash, trying not to tear up. "I'm so sorry I did this to you." Staraptor stirred beneath him and Ash knew he was protesting. "I was stupid and you got hurt," he insisted. "Nurse Joy is going to take care of you tonight and tomorrow I'll send you back to Professor Oak's. You'll get the best care and be fighting fit in no time."

"Star," the flying type said before he closed his eye and went back to sleep. Ash retreated from the room, head down.

"Ash will you need a room for the night?" Nurse Joy asked. Ash looked at her, caught off guard by the question. Why? He would certainly need a room wouldn't he?

"He'll be staying at the gym," Misty answered for him. "We've got a guest room."

That pulled Ash out of his funk. He was torn between being happy and grateful that he'd get to stay with his best friend and being terrified that staying with her would mean more beatings. Then he realised that while those beating were only a possibility they would definitely happen if he refused. "Thanks Mist," he said.

Misty turned away, a light blush on her cheeks. "Come on, let's go."

"Just a sec," said Ash. He took the remaining four pokéballs from his belt. He held them out to Nurse Joy. "Would you mind taking care of these? After today they could use a good rest."

Nurse Joy smiled and took them off his hands. She told him to come back in the morning. Ash thanked her and followed Misty and Pikachu out of the Pokémon Centre.

The trio walked in silence through the streets of Cerulean City. Every now and then someone would wave to Misty, and she would wave back, but she never stopped to speak with them. It was obvious to Ash that the people of Cerulean respected Misty a lot and he figured that if she were in a better mood she might have talked with them. He didn't dare break the silence because he knew he'd put her in that mood.

It didn't take them long to reach the gym. The bright pink and yellow dome almost blended in with the autumn colours of the park the gym stood in. The giant white Dewgong sign that sat upon the wave shaped rim stopped that from happening. Ash noted that the place was in good shape, better than it had been the last time he was in Cerulean.

Misty led him around the back of the gym, where there was only one set of glass doors instead of the three around the front. She pulled a set of keys out of her pocket and opened the doors, holding them open for Ash. He went inside and found himself in a hallway with wooden floors and creamy yellow walls. There were five doors, two on each side of the hall and one at the end. The last was the only one that was closed. Ash reckoned that it lead to the gym.

"Make yourselves comfortable in the sitting room," said Misty, putting Pikachu down and pointing to the far door on the right. She walked towards the first door on the left, the kitchen Ash saw. "Do you want some water?"

"Sure," he answered, a bit unnerved by the cool tone of Misty's voice. He walked past the first door on the right, seeing nothing but a desk, a chair, a computer and some filing cabinets. Misty's office. On the desk there was a framed photograph, one that had been taken by Todd Snap. He, Misty and Brock were standing side by side, smiling as though their dreams had come true. Pikachu was sat on his cap and Togepi was in Misty's arms. "Good times," Ash whispered.

He left the office and walked through the next door to the sitting room. There was a three piece furniture suite facing a flat screen TV, two armchairs and a couch big enough for three people, all covered by black leather. Ash sat down on the couch, putting his injured wrist up on the back to keep it elevated. Pikachu leapt up onto his knee, sighing in content when Ash started to pet him.

Misty followed the pair in a moment later, holding two large glasses of water. She handed one to Ash, who thanked her, then sat down at the other end of the couch and sipped at her own drink. The silence stretched on for what seemed like forever. It was unbearable to Ash that two friends who were usually so loud were sitting in silence. He broke it. "You're mad."

"Of course I'm mad!" snapped Misty. "You could have died! You're always doing this, being needlessly reckless. At least back when we travelled together you did these things to save a person or a Pokémon! Honestly what were you thinking?"

Ash stared at his friend. She was breathing hard after her outburst, the fire in her eyes threatening to burn him. He sighed. He knew why she was angry; he'd probably have been just as bad if their positions were reversed. "I just wanted to get here quicker. To see you sooner" he said. "I thought it would be like flying on Pidgeot or Charizard. I was stupid and Staraptor paid the price. But I swear," he added, "I'm never doing that again!"

"Well of course not," said Misty, in a familiar tarty tone, turning away from him. "Moron."

Ash leaned closer to her, a small grin on his face. "So, do you forgive me Misty?"

Misty tried to resist. The corners of her mouth were twitching, as if she were forcing herself not to smile. Eventually she gave in. "Fine," she sighed, turning back to him. "But only if you tell me everything about Unova. And especially all about the cute water types you saw!"

Ash laughed. That was something he could do.

* * *

Hours later Ash was closing his tale for Misty. "Iris and Cilan said goodbye to me and Pikachu at the docks before I boarded the sea plane. I was home the next day," he finished.

"Sounds like you had a great time," said Misty with a smile on her face. She'd heard some of the story through Ash's sporadic phone calls while in the Unova region but nothing beat listening to it in person. "It seems like me and Iris have a lot in common."

"You two would get along like a house on fire," Ash agreed. Both girls wanted to be masters of their chosen element, both girls insulted him on a regular basis and both of them had an irrational fear of a certain Pokémon type. "Literally," he added under his breath.

"What was that Ash?" Misty asked with a dangerous glint in her eye. Ash hurriedly told her it was nothing. "That's what I thought." Misty's smile turned sad. "So how long before you go traipsing off to another far away region? Like Kalos?"

Ash smiled widely. "I'm not," he answered simply.

Misty blinked. "What do you mean, you're not?" she asked incredulously. "You're not giving up are you?"

"No way," he laughed. "I'm re-entering the Indigo Conference. I've already got the Earth and Boulder badges." He reached down to the backpack he'd put on the floor and pulled out a badge case. He handed it to Misty to inspect.

She narrowed her eyes at him, not even bothering to look at the badges. "So that's why you're here," she said. "A gym battle."

"Not only," insisted Ash. "I'm also here to see my awesome best friend, who I don't get to hang with anywhere near as much as I'd like to."

Misty's expression softened. She smiled in a way that sent chills up Ash's spine. Very different from the usual terror induced chills. "Flattery will get you everywhere, Mr Pokémon Master," she said. Then she winked.

_Oh Mew, what is she doing to me? _he asked himself. _Keep it together Ash! _"So how's the gym doing?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Well," Misty began only to be interrupted by the sound of keys in the back door. It opened and Ash could suddenly hear giggling and a strange, wet smacking sound.

"Stop, stop," panted a voice from the hallway. "We don't know if Misty's home yet and you know what she's like when she sees us." There was a vaguely agreeing noise, as if the person making it didn't really want to but understood why he had to. Two sets of footsteps could be heard against the wooden floor and then a tall blonde woman dressed in a summery dress appeared in the doorway.

"Hey Daisy," said Misty, greeting the older woman and stopping her in her tracks.

"Hey baby sister," slurred Daisy. She seemed a little unsteady on her feet. "We're just back and me and – Hello, who are you?" she asked, spotting Ash. "Oh my Moltres, is that the boy you used to follow around everywhere?" She leant forward and added in a stage whisper, "I can totally see why you did it now. He's, like, hot."

"Daisy!" screeched Misty.

"Uh, hi Daisy," said Ash. "How are you – Tracey?" he exclaimed, seeing the Pokémon watcher appear behind Daisy. He slung an arm around her and she leant back, snuggling into his embrace.

"Hey Ash," he said, grinning like a Meowth with a ball of yarn.

"Tracey made me this wonderful picnic up at Cerulean Cape," Daisy informed them with a giggle. "It was so romantic. We shared a bottle of wine and a few of those chocolates filled with liquor."

"You lush," said Misty. It certainly explained why the two of them were swaying in place.

"Oh you're just jealous that you can't have alcohol yet," said Daisy. "Me, Vi and Lils offer you a taste every holiday and you down it so quickly." Misty huffed, clearly getting ready to yell at her sister.

Tracey interrupted before a fight could start. "Ash, what happened to your wrist?" he asked. Whatever else the wine might have done to him it hadn't taken away his powers of observation.

"Nothing," said Ash quickly.

"The idiot sprained his wrist falling from Staraptor," Misty answered for him. Ash glared at her.

"You fell off a Pokémon?" Tracey asked.

"Please don't tell my Mom," begged Ash. "She'll only be worried and I'm fine. I promise!"

Tracey looked unsure but Daisy rose up on her toes to speak in his ear. "Worry about it in the morning," she failed to whisper. "You and I have things to do upstairs." Misty mimed gagging at Ash who was very pointedly not looking at the couple. Daisy took Tracey's hand and led him through the hallway to the far door on the left, where the stairs were. "We'll leave you two lovebirds alone. Remember to keep your hands above your clothes, you're only sixteen!"

"Daisy!" screamed Misty, missing Ash reprimand Pikachu for making some sort of comment. "He's here for a gym battle." Daisy's laughter faded as she and Tracey disappeared to the floor above, leaving Ash and Misty in another awkward silence. Again Ash was the one who broke it.

"Wow," he breathed. "Tracey and Daisy? When did that happen?"

"While you were in Sinnoh, I think," answered Misty. "They're pretty serious. He treats her like nobody ever has before and she's never been so happy. I think it's love."

"Sinnoh?" repeated Ash. "But I've talked to Tracey tons of times since then. I spent the entire winter in Pallet for crying out loud. He never once mentioned this!"

"Did you ask?" Misty pointed out. Ash deflated.

"I guess not," he replied. "Most of our conversations revolve around Pokémon. I know Venonat and Marill evolved and that he'd ordered something called a Metal Coat off the internet for Scyther but I never thought to ask about his love life."

"And he didn't volunteer it because he knew you wouldn't care," said Misty. "Everyone knows you only think about food, Pokémon and sleep."

"That's not true," Ash asserted. Misty raised an eyebrow at him. "I think about my friends." She smiled at that, almost as if she was glad to be proven wrong. "So how is the gym doing?" he asked again, reminding her of the question he'd posed before they'd been interrupted.

"It's doing pretty good," she admitted. "I'm rated third in Kanto in terms of the least amount of badges given out this year, just behind Sabrina and Blaine, though I get more challenges then they do so it's not a fair comparison."

Ash smiled as he listened to Misty list her accomplishments and describe the trials of being a gym leader. He was glad she was enjoying her life in Cerulean and while he always wished she could join him again he could never ask her too. The gym had become her way of reaching her goal of becoming a Water Pokémon Master and Ash would never ask her to give that up.

* * *

The next morning Ash headed to the Pokémon Centre in good spirits. He and Misty had ordered a pizza and stayed up late into the night, reminiscing about their past adventures and swapping tales they hadn't gotten around to telling each other yet. Before they'd headed to bed, and thankfully by the time that happened Tracey and Daisy were long asleep, they'd agreed on a time for Ash's gym battle. Now he and Pikachu were going to check on Staraptor and change his team.

Nurse Joy looked up as the doors to the Centre opened, recognising him instantly. "Good Morning Ash," she said. "How is your wrist feeling?"

"It's doing all right Nurse Joy," he said, unconsciously holding it. "I put some ice on it this morning and it feels better. How are Staraptor and the others?"

"They're all doing fine," she told him, handing him five pokéballs. "Staraptor's strong and I predict a full recovery."

"Thank you Nurse Joy," he said before walking to the videophones. He quickly dialled Professor Oak's number and waited for him to pick up.

"Ah Ash," said the older man when he saw who it was. "Goodness, are you in Cerulean City already? You made good time through Mount Moon."

Ash laughed nervously at that, scratching the back of his head. He was careful to keep his left wrist out of view. "Hey Professor, I need to change my team for my gym battle against Misty," he said.

"Of course," Oak replied as he began to set up the transfer. "That will be a fierce match I'm sure. Two old friends battling their hearts out. It's what Pokémon training is all about."

"Uh, yeah, definitely," Ash agreed before telling he Professor who he needed. "Listen, Staraptor's injured," he added once he was done. "He won't be able fly for a few weeks. Will you take care of him?"

"You have my word Ash," said the Professor. He hit the button on the transfer machine. Ash's five pokéballs disappeared, only to be replaced a minute later. "Good luck Ash," he said before the screen went black. Ash thanked him before rushing back to the gym. Misty had promised him that if he were even a minute late he'd be cleaning Gyarados's teeth before the battle.

He entered through the front doors this time, hurrying through the yellow lobby. Tracey was there to meet him and led them both through the double doors to the battlefield. It was much the same as the last time Ash had been there, a large stadium with stands for spectators overlooking an Olympic sized pool with a high dive at the far end. A huge Poliwag and a Starmie were painted on the walls. There were rectangular floating platforms out on the pool but it looked like platforms attached to the ends had been installed for the trainers to stand on. Daisy was standing on the referee's platform at the side of the pool.

"Morning Ash," she said with a wave.

"Hey Daisy," said Ash as he took his place on the challengers stand. "Where's Misty?" Daisy just pointed at the pool in answer.

Ash didn't see anything at first, and then a nymph out of ancient fairy tales rose up out of the water. Her red hair was still tied up in the side ponytail but the water in it made it look darker. As she pulled herself out of the pool and onto the gym leader's platform Ash found that he couldn't think. All she was wearing was a blue two piece swimsuit. It looked as if it were made of the same material wetsuits were, but it was nothing more than a sports bra and a pair of short shorts. Misty's curves were on display for all to see.

"Chuka kaa chupi chuk pika piiiiichu kachu chachu cha," said Pikachu, snapping Ash out of his extremely shocked and inappropriate thoughts.

"Shut up," the young man hissed, trying desperately to think about anything other than his alluring and scantily clad friend across the battlefield. He then proceeded to say exactly what Pikachu had told him not to. "I do not want to _mate _with her!" He ignored what Pikachu said next, something about not wanting an egg.

"You ready Ash?" asked Misty, forcing him to look at her again. He couldn't speak so he only nodded.

"Articuno's Ice would you look at that blush?" laughed Daisy. "It's adorable. Nice move with the swimsuit Misty!"

"Daisy!" Misty growled, though she was turning red herself. "Would you get on with it?"

"Fine," she moaned. "Ruin my fun why don't you. This is an official Pokémon match between the gym leader Misty and the challenger her boyfr-"

"Daisy!"

"-Ash from Pallet Town," Daisy pulled a remote from her pocket and pressed a button. Motors whirred and the pool rose from the floor, taking the platforms with it. "This is a three on three match with no time limit. It will continue until all Pokémon on one side are unable to battle or until one trainer forfeits."

_I can do this,_ thought Ash as the pool stopped moving. _Just focus on the battle, nothing else matters but the battle. _He pulled a pokéball from his belt.

"Are both trainers ready?" asked Daisy. "Then begin!"

Ash and Misty acted at the same time, their Pokémon appearing in a flash of white light.

"GO!"

* * *

**AN: **Next time Ash and Misty battle! Can Ash keep his mind off Misty's assets long enough to win? Tell me what you think will happen!


	7. Chapter 7

**Vondrakenhof here. **Holy Zapdos is it good to be updating again. I'm sorry it's been so long but I had assignments and exams and excuses. And this chapter took forever to write. Fair warning right now, it's longer than any of the other chapters so far. And it is _just _the battle between Ash and Misty. Seriously, what follows is five thousand plus words depicting a gym battle. I think that's an accomplishment right there.

Anyway, there was meant to be more to this chapter but then this wasn't supposed to be as long as it is so after a conversation with **ruggler354** (who writes the **best **battles ever I swear and plugged this story while reposting the story **Trial of Legends. **Ruggler's stories were the inspiration for writing a battle heavy story.) I decided to leave this chapter as just the battle and do all the other stuff in the next one. Which means the next chapter is half written.

Okay, so I should let you guys read the battle. **Enjoy and please review!**

* * *

**Back Around Again.**

"_Are both trainers ready?" asked Daisy. "Then begin!"_

_Ash and Misty acted at the same time, their Pokémon appearing in a flash of white light._

"_GO!"_

* * *

A small green reptile materialised on the platform in front of Ash. A green bulb as large as his body rested on his back. He took one look at the surrounding water and nodded grimly.

Misty greeted the grass type with a wave. "Hi Bulbasaur!" she called. Bulbasaur smiled and rasped his name in response. "Sorry about this but Dewgong and I are going to beat you!"

Misty's Pokémon surfaced from where it had dove the moment it escaped the pokéball. It waved its long white flipper and splashed its long tail in the direction of its opponent.

"That's what you think!" retorted Ash with a smirk. "Bulbasaur, Razor Leaf!"

A number of sharp spinning leaves shot out from beneath the grass type's bulb. They flew towards Dewgong with expert precision but the sea lion Pokémon simply dived under the water, allowing the attack to pass by harmlessly. There was laughter in the ice type's black eyes as it looked up from beneath the surface.

"Take Down!" ordered Misty. Dewgong flicked its tail, propelling itself through the water with phenomenal speed. The sea lion Pokémon broke the surface, leaping out of the water and over the platform, its horned head aimed at Bulbasaur.

Who wasn't there anymore.

The poison type had used one of his favourite tricks. Slamming his vines against the platform he was standing on Bulbasaur had propelled himself into the air, right over Dewgong's head.

The ice type crashed back into the water on the other side of the platform. Dewgong turned itself around as fast as it could, leaving a small wave in the wake of its tail. Without any prompting from its trainer Dewgong took advantage of Bulbasaur's inability to manoeuvre in the air, firing a ray of multi-coloured light from the tip of its horn. The Aurora Beam struck the seed Pokémon from beneath, sending him tumbling through the air. He landed in the water with a splash.

"Aqua Tail!" yelled Misty, pointing at where Bulbasaur was flailing in the pool. Dewgong dove to the bottom of the arena, where the artificial coral reef lay. The water type curved upward and shot to the surface, a strange current gathering behind it. Dewgong burst from the water, jumping high into the air, and the water followed. A geyser flowed around the sea lion Pokémon's powerful tail.

"Bulbasaur, use Vine Whip to get to the platform!" Ash roared. The grass type wrapped one prehensile vine around the nearest platform and pulled himself out of the way as Dewgong flipped forward through the air and brought its tail, and the rushing water, crashing down, right where Bulbasaur had been struggling a moment before. The splash hit the seed Pokémon, strong enough to force him to dig his claws into the platform, keeping him from being washed back into the pool.

_She's forcing us onto the defensive,_ thought Ash. _I have to attack._

"Razor Leaf again!" he shouted. Bulbasaur turned back to Dewgong, once again shooting the vegetative projectiles at his opponent. The water type reacted the same way it had before, diving beneath the surface. Ash watched its progress, knowing exactly what it was going to do. He just had to wait for the right moment. "Vine Whip now!"

Dewgong tried to use Take Down again, leaping at Bulbasaur exactly as it had minutes before. The grass type's attack caught sea lion Pokémon in the side as it soar through the air. It crashed back into the water, shaking itself.

"Leech Seed!" ordered Ash. Bulbasaur bent his forelegs and raised his hindquarters, taking aim at Dewgong. A small brown seed began to protrude from the tip of his bulb as he tracked the water type with his eyes.

"Bulba!" he cried, firing his projectile. The seed struck Dewgong and sprouted long green tendrils, covered in tiny leaves. The tendrils wrapped around the sea lion Pokémon, flashing red as it sapped its energy. Bulbasaur grinned as the place where the Aurora Beam struck slowly felt better.

"Dewgong!" Misty yelled in concern. "Use Ice Beam!" Her Pokémon obeyed, its aim ruined by the distracting pain of the Leech Seed. The beam of cold energy shot from Dewgong's horn, striking the water as the Pokémon corrected itself, leaving what looked like a glacier behind, a half-finished bridge of ice across the pool. Bulbasaur easily dodged the attack as half the platform it was on was frozen solid. "Slide across the ice to get rid of those vines!"

Dewgong didn't hesitate. It leapt onto the bridge, rolling like a bullet as it slid towards Bulbasaur. The tendrils of the Leech Seed attack caught on the uneven surface of the ice, tearing away from the water type's body. Freed of the life-sapping plant Dewgong used its flippers to guide itself as it slid at Bulbasaur.

"Charge it Bulbasaur!" Ash shouted. The quadruped did as he was told, digging his claws into the ice for better traction. The distance between the two Pokémon was closing quickly and Dewgong, who had more speed, more mass and a nasty horn on its head was going to win in the collision. But Ash had other plans. "Jump!"

Bulbasaur leapt, just before Dewgong would have crashed into him. The seed Pokémon threw his opponent a small smirk and the ice type's black eyes widened. Bulbasaur hit the ice with his front claws, digging in and letting his momentum turn him around. He readied his bulb for the order he knew was coming.

"Solarbeam!" Ash roared. White light gathered at Bulbasaur's bulb, growing brighter with every second. Bulbasaur's grin grew, his red eyes glinting.

"You can't let him do that Dewgong!" shouted Misty, a hint of panic in her voice. "Use Ice Beam to turn yourself around!" Still sliding on the ice, Dewgong fired its attack ahead. Where the freezing power struck the ice built up. The sea lion Pokémon aimed its attack so the ice was sculpted into a smooth half-bowl, not unlike what would be found in a skate park. Dewgong used the curve to turn itself around without losing speed. The water type rocketed back towards Bulbasaur, whose bulb now shone like a miniature sun. "Aqua Tail!"

On either side of the ice bridge streams of water were drawn up from the pool by Dewgong's power. They spun around its tail like a miniature whirlpool, striking the ice with an audible whack. It cried out in triumph as it closed on Bulbasaur. It struck the ice with one flipper, forcing itself to turn sharply and bring its water shrouded tail down on the grass type.

Bulbasaur fired his attack at that moment. The light blinded everyone, Daisy and Tracey covered their eyes while Misty and Pikachu just closed theirs. Ash squinted, trying to see what happened. There was a loud crunch and a splash.

"Are you all right Bulbasaur?" asked Ash as the light began to fade. He tried to blink away the spots on his vision.

"Bulba," replied Bulbasaur cheerily. He waved a vine at Ash, ignoring the fact that the ice it was standing on was no longer attached to the platform. Not far away it had been broken in two, with a large gap between Bulbasaur's new ice raft and the rest of the bridge. In the gap Dewgong floated belly up, its eyes unfocussed.

"Dewgong is unable to battle," Daisy announced as Misty returned her Pokémon. Ash saw her murmur something to it, most likely something soothing, Misty was always sweet to her Pokémon. She planted her lips on the ball before putting it away.

_Is she trying to kill me? _Ash wondered as unbidden fantasies of her kisses on flesh appeared in his mind. _Focus!_

"Looks like your plan to distract him with your bikini didn't work baby sister," Daisy taunted with a wide grin.

"Shut up Daisy, that's not the plan!" groused Misty. She pulled another pokéball from her belt. "You may have beat Dewgong, Ash, but now it's time for my secret weapon!"

_It's Gyarados, I'm sure of it! _thought Ash.

"I choose you!" she cried, throwing the pokéball out into the arena. It snapped open and the flash of white light emerged before sinking beneath the surface. The light faded and Ash saw nothing. He craned his neck trying to spot whatever creature he and Bulbasaur were up against next when it burst from the water. The Pokémon was blue. It had two webbed feet that ended with four white claws and two webbed hands with three claws. A long tail stood out behind it. It had a pale beak, intelligent, red eyes and a crimson jewel in the centre of its forehead.

_No._

_Freaking._

_Way._

"Golduck!" proclaimed the duck Pokémon from where he was _standing _on the water. Ash picked his jaw up off the floor. Pikachu left his where it was.

"What? But how? I mean-" Ash stammered, his eyes shifting between Misty and her Pokémon. "When did Psyduck evolve?"

"Shortly after you left for Unova," Misty answered her voice thick with glee.

"But that was months ago," said Ash, still coming to grips with the fact that Psyduck, Misty's infuriatingly slow, headache prone, annoying Psyduck, had actually evolved. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"And miss the look on your face? Please!" she laughed. "If it makes you feel better Brock had the same reaction."

"Brock knew too?" exclaimed Ash. "I'm guessing you made sure he didn't tell me either?"

"He agreed not to as long as I emailed him the video of this battle," Misty informed him, pointing to a CCTV camera in the corner of the gym. "He wanted to see your reaction too."

Ash blanched as a horrible thought hit him. "Does that camera record sound too?"

"Yeah, why?" asked Misty.

"No reason," said Ash, covering his face with his hand. "I am so gonna get it when I reach Celadon," he muttered to himself.

"Are you two done, like, flirting already?" asked Daisy. "Only, me and Tracey have plans for the rest of the day."

Misty rolled her eyes. "We're ready," she said with a grin. Golduck stood patiently, smiling at Bulbasaur.

"So are we," said Ash. Bulbasaur grunted in agreement. He didn't wait for his trainer's command. The moment Daisy announced the second round had begun Bulbasaur launched a Razor Leaf attack. It was predictable but it was the only way he and Ash could really gauge Golduck's strength. Solarbeam took too long to charge, Leech Seed could easily be avoided and with Bulbasaur's lack of manoeuvrability Vine Whip was out of the question.

"Disable," Misty commanded softly. Golduck raised a hand. His eyes flashed blue and the oncoming barrage of leaves simply stopped and fell onto the surface of the pool. Ash's eyes widened.

"Crap, try a Solarbeam," he shouted. Bulbasaur gritted his teeth and aimed his bulb at Golduck. Light began to gather once more.

"Psychic," said Misty. Purple fire surrounded Golduck and his shining blue eyes returned. The water type pointed at Bulbasaur and the same purple fire enveloped the seed Pokémon.

"Saur!" he cried out in panic as Golduck lifted him off the ice. The light stopped gathering at his bulb. He was carried higher and higher until even his long vines wouldn't be able to reach the arena below. Bulbasaur swallowed, bracing himself for what was inevitably coming next.

"Gol-duck!" shouted the water type, swinging his raised arm down. Bulbasaur followed, shouting out. The seed Pokémon crashed into the ice, shattering it into pieces that began to float away.

"Bulbasaur!" yelled Ash, concerned for his friend. The grass type surfaced, unmoving. Ash recalled him to his pokéball.

"Bulbasaur is unable to battle, the round goes to Golduck," said Daisy. She looked as if she'd expected it. Ash wondered how many challengers Golduck had sent running since he had evolved.

_I could use Pikachu, _he thought, looking at his starter. Pikachu was staring at Golduck, still struggling to reconcile the image of this strong battler with the dumb yellow duck he'd known for years. Ash couldn't blame him. _No, I'm going to need Pikachu for when she _does _use Gyarados._

He fingered the pokéballs at his belt, trying to make a decision. None of the Pokémon he had with him were resistant to psychic attacks. All he could really do was take away Misty's advantage over his limited mobility. He nodded to himself and plucked a ball from the back of his belt. He threw it out over the water. "Let's go Corphish!"

The red and white ruffian Pokémon appeared in a flash, landing in the water. It let out a shout and began splashing about, happy to find itself in a pool.

"Corphish we're in a battle here," called Ash. Corphish's eyes snapped open and, suddenly serious, it shot back into position across from Golduck. It let out a low, menacing growl while clacking its pincers. Its opponent just sneered.

"Begin!" shouted Daisy. Ash was quick to start off by ordering a Bubblebeam. Corphish thrust one large claw forward, opening it to release a stream of bubbles, each one catching the light in a rainbow of colours. The bubbles shot towards Golduck as though propelled by a strong wind.

"Hydro Pump!" instructed Misty. Golduck clenched his fists, throwing his head back as if to howl like a Mightyena. His chest swelled visibly as he breathed deep and he lowered his head. Opening his bill Golduck let out a torrent of water that shot right at Corphish. The Bubblebeam was brushed aside by the duck Pokémon's attack, which struck Corphish hard. The ruffian Pokémon was pushed backward until it struck the floating platform in front of Ash. It was forced up onto the platform before the Hydro Pump ended. Misty smiled. "Slash."

Golduck moved. He ran atop the water and he was fast. Ash barely had time to react; before he knew it Golduck had reached the floating ice platform and jumped from it towards Corphish. The duck Pokémon's right claws were glowing white and he was coming down hard on his water type.

"Corphish Harden!" shouted Ash. Corphish's shell flashed, reflecting the light more clearly. The crustacean stood defiant as Golduck landed on its platform, swinging its glowing claws. Corphish growled, unfazed by the attack as it struck, its hardened exoskeleton providing enough protection. "Use Crabhammer!"

Corphish's pincer began to glow white. It jumped, swinging its claw down hard on Golduck's head. The duck Pokémon cried out in pain, sinking to his knees and clutching at his head. Corphish yelled in triumph, closing its eyes and waving its claws about.

"Golduck!" Misty called out in concern. "Now you've done it!"

"Done what?" asked Ash.

"Golduck can use his psychic powers at will," explained Misty. "He doesn't need a splitting headache like he did when he was a Psyduck. But if you give him one now…" She trailed off as the tell-tale purple fire of Psychic surrounded Golduck once more, flaring higher and brighter than it had before. Even through the water type's closed eyes Ash could see the blue shine. The ethereal fire spread and engulfed Corphish and it suddenly found itself unable to move.

"Corphish!" yelled Ash. He watched as, like Bulbasaur, Corphish was raised into the air. He could see the mounting panic on his Pokémon's face. Corphish slammed down onto the platform hard as Golduck opened its glowing eyes and growled. Again Corphish was floated into the air and again it was thrown against the platform by Golduck's attack. "You have to get free!"

Misty shook her head. "He really doesn't like being reminded of his pre-evolved days," she said, her tone full of exasperation. She watched as Golduck continued his Psychic attacks, wincing as the still struggling Corphish struck the platform again.

"Corphish!" screamed Ash. This wasn't working. He plucked the water type's pokéball from his belt. He'd have to recall it and send in Pikachu.

"Cor, Corphish!" cried the ruffian Pokémon in desperation. Its entire body began to glow. Ash's eyes widened. He watched as the water type changed. It grew larger, its arms lengthened and its claws sprouted spikes. Its tail extended outward and its two pairs of hind legs fused together. The light vanished and the newly evolved Pokémon crashed down onto the platform. "Crawdaunt!"

It was much bigger than it had been as a Corphish. It was more imposing too, its spike-covered limbs and sunken eyes adding to its intimidating appearance. Ash thought the star on its forehead and the two blue stripes offset the effect though.

Crawdaunt growled once more and a dark light shrouded its claw. It swung the pincer, backhanding Golduck in the face. Caught off guard the duck Pokémon was knocked into the pool. He surfaced not far away, regaining his standing position on the surface of the water, psychic fire still blazing.

"Go after him Crawdaunt!" ordered Ash, getting over the shock of the mid-battle evolution. "Use Night Slash again!"

Crawdaunt obeyed, jumping into the water with a splash. It swam at its opponent, the same dark light surrounding both its claws. Golduck raised a hand, intent on stopping the rogue Pokémon in its tracks.

"Don't bother Golduck," cautioned Misty. "Crawdaunt's part dark type, psychic attacks won't do any good." Golduck lowered its arm and let the purple fire die down. It dodged the swing of Crawdaunt's pincers as the crustacean reached him. "Get some distance and use Hydro Pump!"

Golduck leapt backward in a neat summersault, landing with barely a ripple on the other side of the broken ice bridge. He spat the geyser of water at the dark type.

"Block it!" yelled Ash. Crawdaunt brought its claws up in front of its face, putting them between it and the oncoming torrent. The attack struck but, unlike before, Crawdaunt wasn't pushed back. Instead it advanced through the Hydro Pump, snarling in defiance. "Go under and attack!"

Crawdaunt dove down beneath the water, escaping from Golduck's attack. It shot up quickly, the Night Slash attack readied at its pincers. It caught Golduck in the stomach with one claw, forcing him to double over. Crawdaunt raised its other claw, preparing to strike the duck Pokémon in the back of the head.

"Disable!" shouted Misty. Golduck's eyes flashed and the dark aura around Crawdaunt's pincer vanished. Robbed of its power the attack did little more than annoy the duck Pokémon. Crawdaunt growled in frustration, tossing Golduck away. The water type's eyes flashed once more, planting its hands on the surface of the water. He flipped over and for the briefest moment there was purple fire. The water rose into a wall behind him, supporting Golduck enough to push off and rebound at Crawdaunt. His claws began to glow white, the claws on his feet as well. It struck at the dark type, swiping with all four limbs.

"Strike back with Crabhammer!" cried Ash as the Slash attacks impacted against Crawdaunt's hardened body. The rogue Pokémon growled, its pincers shining white with power. It matched Golduck attack for attack, each Pokémon growing more vicious as they traded blows. Here a Slash caught a more sensitive piece of shell. There a Crabhammer bruised flesh as Golduck failed to dodge.

"Hydro Pump again!" ordered Misty. Golduck unleashed the attack at close range, hitting Crawdaunt in the face. The dark type was forced back, its carapace striking the ice platform that still floated about the pool. "Use Psychic on the ice!"

Golduck smirked as the purple fire flared again. There was a loud crunch as the ice platform broke, splitting into chunks the size of Ash's head. Golduck raised the ice above the surface of the water, manipulating the pieces to make them float in the air around Crawdaunt. It eyed the ice warily.

"Golduck!" yelled the water type, bringing the ice down on the rogue Pokémon.

"Smash it all!" Ash shouted. Crawdaunt raised its pincers, striking the chunks of ice as they closed in on it. When the glowing claws hit the ice was reduced to tiny fragments. Ice broke against its back, where it was helpless to defend itself, and drove it forward. Crawdaunt snarled and hit the next chunk with a vicious upswing. It shattered and the pieces flew at Golduck, blinding the duck Pokémon. "Attack now!"

Crawdaunt surged forward bringing its pincers to bear against Golduck. Once, twice, three times it struck the water type. Golduck cried out in pain as he flew through the air, landing on the floating platform nearest his trainer. Crawdaunt swam after him, catching up quickly. The dark type clamped its claw around Golduck's neck. It lifted him off the platform briefly before slamming him back down.

"Crawdaunt, that's enough!" Ash told his Pokémon. The rogue Pokémon didn't listen. It growled at the helpless Golduck as he tried in vain to pry the pincer from his neck. "Crawdaunt!" The crustacean squeezed its claw, watching as Golduck's eyes widened in panic. "Crawdaunt return!"

Crawdaunt vanished in a flash of red light, back to its pokéball. Ash stared at the device in his hand, his mouth set in a tight line. Daisy and Tracey stared at him with wide eyes. Misty frowned as she returned Golduck.

"Well Ash," she began, replacing Golduck's pokéball with another. "Looks like it's time for the finale."

"Yeah," said Ash, putting Crawdaunt back on his belt. "Looks like."

Misty gave him a fierce smile, getting ready to release the Pokémon Ash knew would be coming. "Misty calls Gyarados!"

The enormous sea serpent emerged from the pokéball with an immense roar. Ash had to grit his teeth against the sound. The creature was huge, with a large gaping mouth and a crown of three blue spikes. Blue scales and white fins covered Gyarados's back while softer yellow scales sat on the underbelly. Two ear-like fins jutted out from either side of the face, along with a pair of long whiskers, their blue colour proclaiming Gyarados to be male.

Ash swallowed. Even knowing he was coming Gyarados was still a sight to behold. Misty's strongest Pokémon. He knew he was extremely powerful, extremely loyal and absolutely merciless in battle. Misty had once told him that she only used Gyarados against the strongest challengers, or the most annoying. Ash wondered whether he qualified as both.

"Pikachu," he said quietly. The electric mouse nodded. He readied himself to leap out onto the battlefield but Ash spoke again. "Pikachu," he repeated. "Misty's giving us all she's got out there. She's fighting with everything she has." Ash looked his companion in the eye, making sure his message got across. "How could we call ourselves her friends if we don't do the same?"

"Chu," Pikachu answered sharply with a tiny grin. He sprang out onto the platform, his cheeks sparking. Gyarados stared down at his opponent, experienced enough to know that size wasn't everything and that Pikachu's electric attacks would exploit his weakness but still confident that it would win.

"The final round is between Misty's Gyarados and Ash's Pikachu," announced Daisy. "The winner will decide the match. Begin!"

"Thunderbolt!" roared Ash. It was an entirely unnecessary command; Pikachu had unleashed the attack before Ash had gotten the first syllable out. Lightning surged from the little mouse's body, splitting the air as it raced towards the dragon opposite. Gyarados roared and the attack struck a nearly imperceptible barrier two feet from his head. Ash gritted his teeth. Gyarados knew Protect. _This makes things trickier._

"Hydro Pump!" ordered Misty. Gyarados let the barrier fall, summoning forth a geyser of water from his mouth. Pikachu leapt aside before he could be flattened by the attack. Ash had to shield his eyes from the spray as Gyarados sank the platform. Pikachu dug all four paws into platform he landed on to keep himself from slipping on the ice that was still there. He raised his lightning bolt tail into the air, forcing electricity from his body into a yellow sphere and hurled it at Gyarados.

The Electro Ball attack caught the atrocious Pokémon in the side of the head, causing him to roar in pain. The water type turned his enraged gaze on Pikachu, belching forth a stream of fire at the mouse Pokémon.

"Use Quick Attack to escape!" yelled Ash. Pikachu shot away, a white light trailing behind him as he scrambled across the ice bridge. Gyarados followed with his attack, melting the ice and causing steam to rise from where the Flamethrower hit. Pikachu jumped from what remained of the ice bridge, skidding to a halt on the platform opposite. He turned and released another Thunderbolt. This time the attack struck home.

Gyarados clenched his eyes shut against the pain as the lightning covered his body. His trainer called for another Hydro Pump but his aim was shot. The attack struck one end of the platform; the opposite end of the one Pikachu was on. The electric mouse found himself being flung into the air, the shock of it forcing him to cease his attack early.

Ash watched as his partner flew through the air towards the waiting Gyarados. The sea serpent looked ready to swallow Pikachu whole. "Use your momentum Pikachu!" he shouted. "Iron Tail!" Pikachu readied his tail, giving it the appearance of stainless steel. The light caught it, glinting, as he swung his body to bring the tail down on Gyarados's blue crest. There was a resounding crack.

Gyarados roared in annoyance. Disorientated, he narrowly missed with another Flamethrower as Pikachu rebounded off his head and landed in the water. Behind the flying type Misty smirked. "He's in the water," she announced. "We have him now Gyarados!"

"That's what you think!" Ash retorted with a fierce grin, one matched by Pikachu. "Thunderbolt him! And make it a big one!"

Misty's eyes widened. Pikachu was in the pool. The _saltwater _pool. Unleashing an electric attack in there would almost certainly fry the atrocious Pokémon. "Gyarados get out of the water!" she cried, a hint of fear in her voice. She only had one shot. Ash could only look on in disbelief as Gyarados coiled in on himself, gathering strength in his powerful muscles and somehow, incredibly, impossibly, propelled his entire body from the water and into the air. "Giga Impact!"

Ash cursed as orange and purple light gathered around Gyarados's head. The dual type was falling back towards Pikachu, who was floating helplessly in the water, the electricity sparking all around. "Pikachu!" Ash shouted. "Turn that Thunderbolt into a shield!"

"Chuuuuuu!" cried Pikachu, the yellow light of the attack surrounding him and colouring the water at the same moment that Gyarados came down on top of him. Ash and Misty had to shield their eyes from the electrified spray the resultant wave caused and Daisy screamed out in fright.

"Pikachu!" yelled Ash, calling out to his Pokémon just as Misty was calling out to hers. The yellow light faded, along with the stars in their vision. Ash spotted Pikachu surfacing by the platform in front of him. He was battered, bruised and breathing hard. He struggled to pull himself up onto the platform. "You okay buddy?" Pikachu nodded, his determined face still set. It wasn't over.

As one, Ash and Pikachu looked at their opponent. Gyarados looked as bad as Pikachu did. Scorch marks covered his serpentine body and with one eye open he glared at the duo. Ash didn't know if he was just recharging after that Giga Impact or whether Pikachu had gotten lucky and paralysed the beast but Gyarados wasn't moving. Either way Ash wasn't about to let the opportunity go to waste.

"You got enough in you for one last blast?" he asked his starter. Pikachu chattered something back about being insulted that Ash had to ask. He laughed at that and pointed at Gyarados. "Show Misty what an Electro Tail looks like!"

"Pika!" the electric type cried. He leapt onto the nearest platform, his tail hardening into steel once more. Pikachu leapt at Gyarados, another ball of electrical energy orbiting his Iron Tail. Gyarados closed his eye, accepting the inevitable. His trainer mimicked him, a faint smile on her lips.

"Well done Gyarados," she whispered. "You did your best."

The attack struck with a loud bang, blinding the humans again.

_I should really learn to cover my eyes whenever Pikachu uses an attack that powerful, _Ash mused, shaking his head in an effort to get the spots from his eyes. _Maybe I should buy a pair of sunglasses. _He blinked twice and spotted Pikachu floating on his back, a wide smile on the Pokémon's face. Gyarados was on his side, unconscious. Misty returned him to his pokéball.

"Is it over?" asked Daisy. Misty rolled her eyes and Ash's brows shot up into his hairline. Daisy looked distraught, her usually perfect hair frizzy from Pikachu's electricity. The look on her face practically begged for there to be no more.

"Yes, it's over Daisy," said Misty with an exasperated smile. "Ash won."

"Okay I declare him winner or whatever," she said, pressing the button to lower the arena back into place. She sent a glare at Pikachu who was now being pulled out of the pool and into a hug by Ash. The trainer didn't care about the wet. "I need to fix my hair and change my outfit."

"Whatever Dais," laughed Misty, stepping off her platform. Tracey helped Daisy off of hers and leading her towards the back of the gym. He shouted his quick congratulations back to Ash.

"Thanks Trace!" Ash yelled with a wide smile fixed in place. He put Pikachu on his shoulder and met Misty in the middle of the gym. The soft smile she wore made him sweat almost as much as the battle.

"Great job Ash," she said, holding out her hand. A blue, teardrop shaped badge was in it. "You won this one fair and square."

"I won the last one that way too," he joked, looking down into her eyes. He had to fight to keep himself from looking further down. He took the badge from her. "Thanks Mist."

Misty raised an eyebrow. "What? No thrusting the badge into the air and yelling 'I got the Cascade Badge'?"

"I could do it if you like," Ash retorted slyly. "Just for you."

Misty laughed. "No thanks. I had enough of that when I was travelling with you. I like this new more mature Ash."

"I bet you never thought you'd say that," the supposedly more mature Ash replied.

"Nope! Never!" she admitted. She turned and began to walk towards the back of the gym, after Tracey and Daisy. Ash found his gaze dropping after her towards her long legs. "Come on, I've got to get changed and then we can take our Pokémon to Nurse Joy."

Ash shook himself as Pikachu batted him on the head with his tail. He looked at the badge in his hand. Proof of his victory. _Ah, what the hell, _he thought. _Just to annoy Misty._

"Yeah! I got the Cascade Badge!"

"Pi-Pikachu!"

Misty covered her face with her palm, but she was smiling.

* * *

**A/N: **So what did you think? Was it good? Fact: the parts with Golduck were the most fun to write. I think I got that done in one sitting.


	8. Chapter 8

**Vondrakenhof here. **You know how I said I had this chapter half written, well that's probably how I got this one out so quickly. You know, despite how long it is. I'm so glad I split the two chapters up, they'd be nearly eleven thousands words together. That's almost as long as my other, eight-chaptered, fic.

As of the last chapter this story has gotten sixty reviews, making it my most reviewed fic ever! Does this mean I'm satisfied? No way! Being the greedy bugger that I am, I want tons more reviews. Why? Because reviews are known to give authors super powers!* So please, enjoy and leave a review!

* * *

**Back Around Again.**

"Oh Mew, that is hilarious!" gasped Misty, trying to breath after laughing too much. "Look at Harry's face! How did she pull that off?"

It was hours after their battle and Ash and Misty were back on the gym's couch in the sitting room, watching the television. The two of them had taken their Pokémon to Nurse Joy at the Pokémon Centre for a well-deserved rest. Pikachu had refused to stay though, despite his tough battle. He was now playing hide and seek with Misty's Marill.

"Her Bayleef knew what it was doing," said Ash, readjusting the ice pack on his wrist. They were watching a special on the league competitions called "The Most Unexpected Results in the Last Ten Years". They'd just seen a clip from the last Silver Conference, where a young Brunette named Lyra had beaten a man who only used fire type Pokémon three to nothing with just her grass starter. "I met her once. Me and her friend competed to catch the same Gible."

"I'm guessing you won?" asked Misty, thinking of the crazy dragon type she'd met before Ash went to Unova.

"No actually," he answered. "That Gible was a lot more serious than the one I caught later."

Misty was about to reply when the presenter began to speak again. "Our next clip comes from the Indigo Conference a few years back. Fan favourite "The Astounding Mandi" was in for what many thought was a foregone conclusion."

"Hey!" exclaimed Ash as a picture of a green haired young man appeared on screen. "I remember him!"

"Mandi's opponent was Ash Ketchum." Two jaws dropped simultaneously. They were showing that match? "He was a young first timer who no one thought would get very far."

"Hey!" Ash repeated, this time in outrage. He glared at Misty who wasn't even trying to hide her giggles.

"Let's watch what happened," the presenter finished. They began to show the footage and a twelve year old Ash appeared on screen, releasing a tiny Krabby onto the Water Field. Ash watched as his Pokémon beat an Exeggutor with a heavy type advantage. Nostalgia hit him as Krabby evolved into Kingler. The pincer Pokémon went on to take down a Seadra and a Golbat. Both he and Misty laughed as his younger self leapt onto the field, jumping from platform to platform to hug his Pokémon.

"Kingler really pulled through that day," said Ash.

"Yeah," Misty agreed with a grin. "It totally carried you through that match!"

"What?" snapped Ash, glaring at her again. "I was the one telling Kingler what to do!"

"Yeah right," scoffed the gym leader. "The only reason you won that match is because Kingler is awesome!" Ash gritted his teeth, ready to get into one of their signature arguments when the presenter interrupted again.

"Ash Ketchum appears in our next clip as well," he said. Ash's eyes widened.

_Please don't be my match against Ritchie, _he prayed fervently. _Please don't be my match against Ritchie._

"Just last year Ketchum took part in the Lily of the Valley Conference," continued the presenter. Ash heaved a sigh of relief, forcing Misty to raise an eyebrow. "His opponent in the semi-finals was Tobias, the man who tamed Legendaries. Tobias had swept through the competition using just one Pokémon, his Darkrai. Everyone figured that this match would be no different. Let's watch."

Ash and Misty watched in silence. Ash remembered exactly what he'd been thinking when he'd walked out of that tunnel. The war that had been raging in his head. _It's futile, _part of him said, _he can't be beaten._

_That's never stopped me before, _another part of him argued. That was the part that had won. Ash had gone out with every intention of winning, determined to fight to the finish. He remembered his frustration as he watched Heracross, Torkoal and Gible fall to Darkrai. He recalled the sickening fear when Sceptile was hit with a Dark Void attack. He could still taste that delicious surge of hope when Sceptile awoke and struck the nightmare Pokémon down.

_We can do this, _he'd thought. And then his heart sank when Tobias released Latios onto the field. Another Legendary. Sceptile hadn't lasted long. Swellow hadn't been able to stand up to it. It had all come down to Pikachu. And Pikachu never disappointed. He'd fought harder than he'd ever done before.

And he'd done the impossible.

"The final score doesn't reflect Ketchum's accomplishment here," said the presenter. "He and his Pokémon did what nobody else could do. That match was one of the highlights of the tournament and the final was disappointing in comparison." He went on to say more but Misty had muted the TV.

Ash turned to look her in the eyes. She hesitated, as though what she was thinking was hard to say. She fiddled with the remote in her hand and bit her lip.

"I remember watching that whole tournament right here," she finally began. "It was amazing, seeing how far you'd gotten, how much better you'd become. I was so proud, watching you defeat all of those strong trainers one after the other." Ash could hardly believe he was hearing this. He knew that Misty believed in him but to hear it so sincerely from her own mouth was something new. "And then you came up against Tobias," she continued, closing her eyes. "And I was so angry that you weren't going to go all the way, that you were going to be beaten by this guy who only used one Pokémon.

"Everyone said you didn't have a chance; that you'd be swept aside by Darkrai just like everybody else." Misty opened her eyes again, meeting Ash's stare. "But you weren't. You beat Darkrai and you knocked out Latios. You went down fighting." Misty reached over and placed her hand on Ash's good one, squeezing it. "Tobias was just a man who found strong Pokémon. You proved yourself to be the better trainer there."

Ash blushed. "Thanks Mist," he choked. Misty, seemingly realising what she was doing, blushed too and withdrew her hand. Ash wracked his brain, desperate to change the topic. "So how," he began and cursed himself when his voice cracked. "How on Earth did you get Psyduck to evolve?"

Misty smiled fondly. "Well, like I said, it happened after you left for Unova," she told him. "It had been a slow day. I hadn't had any challengers so I'd just been doing some training…"

* * *

_Three Frisbees soared over the gym pool. There was a shout and three sudden streams of water struck the Frisbees, sending them falling into the pool. The blue and white dragon Pokémon responsible for shooting them down quickly swam around to collect its targets._

"_Well done Seadra," praised Misty at the edge of the pool, gently petting the water type on the head. "You're getting better every day. Why don't you take a rest?" she asked, holding up a Pokéball. "Return." Seadra trilled happily as it disappeared in a flash of red light._

_Misty stood up and stretched. It had been a good day, despite another failed attempt to teach Psyduck to swim. Corsola, Starmie and Seadra had all shown improvement in their training sessions. And better yet, she hadn't had to deal with any annoying challengers._

_The doors to the lobby slammed open._

Scratch that, _thought Misty before she turned to see a young man with spiky green hair saunter into the gym. He wore a dark red tracksuit, accented with white stripes._

"_I'm here for a match!" he announced loudly. His eyes fell on Misty and there was something in them that made her feel uncomfortable standing there in her swimsuit. He put his fist in his palm and showed a vicious grin. "Fetch your gym leader girly, I'm going to kick his ass!"_

Girly? _thought Misty. She crossed her arms, covering her breasts and hiding her clenched fists. She replied through gritted teeth, "You're looking at her."_

"_You're the gym leader?" he sneered. "But you're just a girl."_

"_My gender has nothing to do with my battling ability!" snapped Misty, prodding the trainer in the chest. "I have been the gym leader here for two and a half years! This gym is ranked among the top five in Kanto!"_

"_Probably because you dress like a slut to distract your challengers," he taunted nonchalantly._

"_What did you say?" Misty roared. She wanted nothing more than to beat the guy to a bloody pulp. "Get out of my gym you prick!"_

"_No," he told her with a mocking smile. "You have to accept my challenge. It's your job" He got in her face. "I bet I can beat you with just one Pokémon."_

_Misty glared at him. "Fine," she hissed. "You want a battle, you'll get a battle. And when I destroy you, you will never show your face around here again." She turned around and stomped over to her platform by the battlefield. She waited for her opponent to take his place._

"_Let's get this over with," he said, throwing a pokéball out over the pool. A large purple snake appeared on the platform furthest from Misty. It hissed at her, showing the pattern on its hood._

Arbok, _thought Misty. Whenever she saw one it always put her in mind of Team Rocket. Well, she'd dealt with them often enough. Misty reached for her strongest Pokémon._

"_Misty calls-" she was interrupted by the sound of a pokéball opening._

Oh please no, _she thought. She had meant to release Gyarados, who would no doubt make short work of the bastard. Instead she was staring in disbelief as the yellow Pokémon in front of her turned to look at her with wide eyes. He tilted his head, clutching it with his hands._

"_Psy?"_

"_Damn it Psyduck, why do you do this to me?" sighed Misty._

_The challenger burst out laughing. "Oh this is too rich," he shouted. "The slut can't even control her Pokémon."_

* * *

"Psyduck's expression changed then," Misty told Ash. "The only thing I can compare it to is the time when Cassidy and Botch were running that fake day care centre and they used tape on his face. He was angry. To this day the duck doesn't know how much he reminded me of Gyarados."

* * *

"_Finish this quickly Arbok," said Misty's opponent. "Poison Fang." Arbok sprang from its platform, diving into the pool and swimming quickly towards the duck Pokémon._

"_Psyduck, look out," cried Misty. Arbok leapt from the water, its teeth glowing with a hideous purple colour. Psyduck sidestepped out of the way._

_Misty's eyes widened. How had _Psyduck _done that? She watched as her Pokémon attacked, slashing with shining claws. Arbok reeled back under the assault._

"_Bite it!" growled the trainer. Arbok obeyed, sinking its teeth into Psyduck's shoulder._

"_Psy-aiyai!" cried the water type. He turned his head to glare at the cobra Pokémon._

"_Psyduck use Water Gun!" yelled Misty. Psyduck opened his mouth, expelling a stronger stream of water than he had ever managed without an unbearable headache. It forced Arbok to release him, sending the poison type back into the water._

"_Wrap it up Arbok!" shouted the green haired trainer. Arbok burst from the pool behind Psyduck. It landed on him, hard, and began to wrap itself around the duck Pokémon. It squeezed._

"_Psyduck do something!" yelled Misty, to no avail. Arbok had trapped Psyduck's arms against his sides and its position around his neck forced him to raise his head just to breath. "Disable, Psychic, anything!"_

"_Crush it," ordered Arbok's trainer. The poison type squeezed harder, cutting off Psyduck's air supply. His face was changing colour._

"_Psyduck!" cried Misty. She grabbed his pokéball from her belt, pointing it at her Pokémon. "Return!" The beam of red light shot at Psyduck and, to Misty's horror, was blocked by Arbok's hood as its trainer instructed. "What are you doing?"_

"_Girls like you should learn their place," the trainer snarled. "Take it down Arbok!" The cobra Pokémon hissed and pulled Psyduck into the water, still crushing him._

"_Psyduck!" screamed Misty. Her heart felt like it was being wrenched in two. The scant bubbles rising to the surface were slowing. She clenched her eyes shut as a tear fell. "Psyduck!"_

_The pool glowed white. Arbok burst from the water, flying backwards. It struck its trainer, sending them sprawling against the gym floor. Misty opened her eyes and gasped._

_There, standing on the pools surface with water trickling upwards around him, was Golduck. He was wreathed in the purple fire of Psychic power. He strode forward, each silent step sending the tiniest of ripples across the surface. The challenger looked up at the evolved water type with wide eyes._

_The psychic fire flared and a torrent of water rose around Golduck. The trainer let out a strangled curse and scrambled from beneath his Pokémon. He fled the gym, his Arbok following on his heels._

_Golduck let the water fall around him and turned to his trainer. Misty stood frozen in place. Golduck's eyes were glowing. A strange feeling came over the gym leader, one she hadn't felt from one of her Pokémon since Gyarados had nearly drowned her._

_She was scared of Golduck._

* * *

"I had nothing to fear of course," Misty elaborated. "Golduck was so happy to have evolved that he swept me up into a big hug. And he never has headaches anymore."

"Wow," breathed Ash, who had listened to the story with rapt attention. Silently he vowed that if he ever found that trainer he'd have Pikachu Thunderbolt him. "Way to go Psyduck."

"Yeah," Misty agreed. "Now he's one of my best battlers and a great swimmer, though he prefers that walking on water trick. And he doesn't interrupt dates anymore!"

"Dates?" choked Ash, feeling his insides turn to ice. "You have a boyfriend?"

"So what if I do?" growled Misty, narrowing her eyes at her friend. There was something strange in them.

"I was just asking!" Ash replied defensively. There was a tense moment before Misty backed down.

"No I don't have a boyfriend," she sighed. "It's mostly just been guys my sisters have set me up with and the occasional charming trainer. None of them have ever gotten a second date though."

Ash didn't bother wondering why that last sentence filled him with relief. He pulled his Pokédex from his pocket, bringing up the map with a touch of the screen. He showed it to Misty. "So I'm thinking that I'll head to-"

"Oh no!" interrupted Misty. "You are not leaving so soon! You're going to give your wrist a chance to heal."

"I'm not planning on leaving tomorrow," said Ash, placating her. He smirked. "Did you think I was going to pass up a chance to train in your pool?"

"Shut up," groused Misty, punching him in the shoulder. "Get all your water types from Professor Oak tomorrow. I'll show you how to really train water Pokémon."

"Thanks," said Ash. "Anyway," he continued while manipulating the map on his Pokédex. "The plan is to go to Saffron from here and then on to Vermillion."

"That won't work," Misty informed him. "Route Five is blocked off completely. The police departments from Cerulean, Saffron and even Celadon are involved in a massive operation. It was all over the news the day before you got here." She took the device from Ash, moving the map to show an area east of Cerulean City. "They've set up a detour along Routes Nine and Ten and through Rock Tunnel. It'll bring you out at," she faltered for a moment, "at Lavender Town."

Ash didn't comment on Misty's stutter. He knew Lavender Town wasn't on her list of favourite places in Kanto. "It looks like it would be easier to keep going on to Vermillion from there. I can beat Surge and then trek north to Saffron."

"Sounds good to me," said Misty. "How long do you think this will take you?"

"I don't know," answered Ash honestly. "It took us nearly three weeks to get here during my first journey. It's only been a little over one week since I left home this time. If I can keep up the pace I'll be back in Pallet long before the League."

"At least this it'll be easier to keep in touch now," Misty mused as she entered her phone number into the Pokédex. She handed back to Ash before picking up the remote again. "Now quiet, the TV's talking."

"…it turns out that Joey's Rattata was, in fact, in the top percentage."

* * *

_She smelled of salt and some delicious fruit that made his mouth water. The scant clothing she wore was dripping wet and clung to her skin. They hugged her curves, accentuating them and driving him crazy. She was dancing for him, enticing him, daring him to claim her._

_She wanted it too, he knew. All he had to do was reach out and take her and she would come willingly. But he could not move. All he could do was lie there and watch her dance, his heart beating like a drum._

_Finally she came closer. She straddled him, one perfect, porcelain leg on either side of him. Smooth fingers touched his bare chest sending shivers down his spine. Her lips ghosted across his cheek and she kissed his ear._

"_Ash," she whispered to him gently, her red hair brushing his face. "WAKE UP!"_

Ash jolted upright in an instant, his wonderful dream already fleeing from his memory. His heart was racing and he was breathing hard. As he tried to calm himself he became aware of the distinctive laughter of his two best friends. Misty was bent double, clutching at her sides. Pikachu was rolling around on the floor. There were tears in both their eyes. Ash flushed with anger.

"What the hell was that for?" he roared, leaping from the bed to get in Misty's face. The girl froze like a Deerling in the headlights. She let out a surprised squeak and her face flushed red. "Well?" Ash demanded.

"I, uh, well," Misty stuttered, unable to form a complete sentence. Ash raised an eyebrow, puzzled. Misty's mouth moved some more but she wasn't making a sound. Suddenly she spun around, putting her back to him and crossing her arms. "You were sleeping late!" she yelled. She continued in a loud voice, preventing Ash from retorting. "Just get your water Pokémon from Oak! We've got training to do!" She stomped out of the guest room. "And bring your swim trunks!" she shouted before she slammed the door.

Ash stood where he was, bewildered. He looked down at Pikachu who was only now calming down, though the occasional chuckle still escaped him. "What the hell was up with her?"

Pikachu stood up, shaking his head. With a mischievous grin he pointed at his trainer's waist. Ash looked at himself and was forcibly reminded that he had slept in only his boxers the night before. He turned the same colour Misty had as it was extremely obvious that his dream had left his body excited.

Ash smacked himself on the forehead. No wonder Misty had run from him.

"Kach pi chu pikak chapi Pikapi?" asked Pikachu. Ash frowned; it was much too early to be translating his little buddy's language. _What were you dreaming about Ash?_

"None of your business Pikachu," he replied with a scowl.

* * *

"Come on Ash! You're worse than a Slowpoke!" taunted Misty as she swam ahead, surrounded by water Pokémon. The pair were in the gym pool swimming laps. Misty was leading, followed closely by Corsola, Seadra, Politoed, Seaking, Dewgong, Marill, Golduck and the Starmie as well as Ash's Kingler, Totodile, Buizel, Oshawott and Palpitoad. Gyarados was curled up beneath them, resting. Ash himself was trailing behind with Pikachu. He of course blamed it on his injured wrist and the fact that he didn't _live_ in the water.

Misty blamed it on the fact that he was lazy.

Ash sighed. At least she was speaking normally to him now. She still wouldn't look at him though. He thought he caught Misty peek at him once or twice when he wasn't looking but she'd blushed to her shoulders and turned away whenever he looked. Well, that was the least pressing of his concerns today. He stopped swimming and looked down to the bottom corner at the far end of the pool.

Crawdaunt sat there on the fake coral brooding.

Ash rubbed his face with his good hand. He'd hoped that Crawdaunt's behaviour during the battle the day before had been from the shock of evolution but it was still in a bad mood. He didn't know whether it was ashamed or just grumpy. Ash had gotten all his water types from Oak, he'd cheated by sending Pikachu's empty pokéball back to the lab so they could all be there, because he'd wanted them to enjoy Misty's pool. But now Crawdaunt was having none of it.

Ash dove beneath the surface, releasing a little bit of breath so that he could swim to the bottom. The pressure that deep was a strange feeling and he wondered how Misty could find it comforting. He waved a hand to get the crustacean's attention. It opened its eyes and scowled at him. Ash pointed at the large group above them, trying to convince Crawdaunt to join in. It shook its head stubbornly.

Ash crossed his arms, insisting. Crawdaunt mimicked him and turned away, intent on ignoring its trainer. Ash gave in, if only because he had to surface to breathe. He swam up quickly, sticking his head above the water and sucking down a lungful of air. He grabbed onto the side of the pool, trying to think of a solution.

"What's the problem?" asked Misty. Ash turned to find the girl treading water with Pikachu behind him. He pulled himself out of the pool so that he could sit on the ledge. He and Misty maintained eye contact very carefully. Pikachu clambered up his leg to sit beside him.

"Crawdaunt's sulking," he said, gesturing at the dark type. "I'm trying to get it to join in with the others but I think yesterday's bothering it."

"Chaa-chuk piiiiichu kapi chach pichaka. Kach chuchu," said Pikachu knowingly. He let out a frightened squeak as Ash pushed him into the pool. The mouse Pokémon surfaced a moment later, spluttering. "Pikapi!"

"You deserved it," Ash told him flatly. The trainer was blushing hard and, if he didn't know better, would have sworn the pool was set to a hot spring's temperature. "Perverted little rodent," he mumbled under his breath.

"What did he say Ash?" asked Misty, who looked on, clueless of the exchange.

"You don't want to know," Ash replied honestly. _Crawdaunt just needs to mate. Like you two. _Ash was going to be so happy when Pikachu found a female he wanted to mate with, the teasing would be repaid with interest. Of course knowing Ash's luck, and knowing Pikachu, the electric type wouldn't give a Rattata's behind what Ash said.

"Maybe you should check your Pokédex," suggested Misty. "It might be able to tell you what's up with Crawdaunt."

"Good idea," said Ash, standing up. He walked over to the stands, where he'd left all of his gear. He quickly dried his hands with a towel before plucking the device from his backpack. He made his way back over to where Misty and Pikachu were splashing each other playfully. Ash pointed the Pokédex at Crawdaunt and pressed the question mark on the screen.

"Crawdaunt, the Rogue Pokémon and the evolved form of Corphish," announced the monotone voice of the machine. "This Pokémon has a violent nature that compels it to challenge other living things. It drives other Pokémon out of its territory with its fierce attacks." Ash frowned, that didn't sound good.

"Well there's your answer," said Misty, who was looking at him again. Her eyes didn't quite reach his face and there was a light blush on her cheeks. She shook herself. "Crawdaunt's instincts are telling it to attack its friends for territorial reasons."

Ash nodded. "You go back to training the others," he told Misty. "I'll have a chat with Crawdaunt." Misty nodded and swam back over to the racing water types. Ash put the Pokédex back by his bag before diving into the pool. He swam to the bottom and tapped Crawdaunt on the shell, getting its attention once more. The dark type narrowed its sunken eyes, resolute in its decision to avoid the other Pokémon. Before it could turn away Ash quickly pointed between the Pokémon and himself and then up to the surface, at the corner of the pool. Crawdaunt growled but relented and rose through the water. Ash followed after it.

They broke the surface far from any of the other Pokémon. Ash pulled himself onto the edge so that he could sit with his legs dangling in the water again. Crawdaunt grumbled to itself as it waited for its trainer to speak.

"I get it you know?" Ash began after a minute. "I get that you have brand new instincts telling you what to do. But you're not a wild Pokémon Crawdaunt. You're part of a team." Ash looked over to the opposite side of the pool where Misty was setting up some sort of machine filled with discs. They reminded Ash of the targets used by the Orange League gym leader Cissy in her Water Gun contest. The water Pokémon waited eagerly. "And that means you have to control your instincts. Not a single member of this team, not me, not Pikachu, not any of your friends over there, fights for themselves. We all fight together, to be the best. Together." He looked at Crawdaunt, hoping he was getting through. "So channel that instinct, use it in your training and in the battles ahead. We're going to be the best, all of us." Ash smiled. "And make sure you don't sulk like this at the ranch. You know Sceptile won't stand for it. He'll kick your tail."

Crawdaunt seemed to chuckle weakly at the joke, turning with Ash to watch Misty start the target trap, sending the discs flying out over the pool. More than a dozen Pokémon began to strike them down with a variety of water attacks, Water Guns, Hydro Pumps, Bubblebeams and one spherical Water Pulse. The Pokémon were competing amongst themselves to see who could strike the most targets out of the air. Ash turned back to Crawdaunt.

"Why don't you show them what you've got?" he suggested with a grin, jerking his thumb at the group. Crawdaunt nodded and sunk beneath the surface, swimming towards the fun. A target shot from the trap and before any of the others could react Crawdaunt leapt from the water and smacked it down with a Crabhammer attack.

"Nice one Crawdaunt!" yelled Misty as the dark type splashed back down. The other water types and Pikachu cheered, much to the surprise of the rogue Pokémon. It seemed embarrassed, but pleased, by the praise.

The trap fired another target and, not to be outdone, Golduck jumped from the water. He slashed at it with his claws and the pieces landed in the water behind him. The duck Pokémon came down beside Crawdaunt, who narrowed its eyes at him. The two Pokémon shared a heated gaze, small grins at their mouths.

Ash laughed. "Looks like we've got a competition on our hands Misty," he announced, getting up to walk around the pool to her. The other water types retreated, roaring boisterously. Misty's Pokémon backed up until they were behind Golduck while Ash's positioned themselves behind Crawdaunt. "How do you feel about heating this up?"

Misty threw him a smirk before flicking a small switch on the trap. The targets began to fire in rapid succession. Golduck and Crawdaunt both leapt for them as best as they were able. Crawdaunt struck them with its pincers, alternating between using Crabhammer and Night Slash. Golduck slashed at every one of them that came his way. The contest was heating up, with neither Pokémon being able to outdo the other.

Misty smiled to herself and hit another switch on the machine. The targets stopped firing. There was a tense moment as Crawdaunt and Golduck waited for the trap to start launching again. Each was determined to beat the other.

With a loud thunk the machine spat out five discs at once. The two Pokémon were prepared to strike them out of the air when they were interrupted by a loud roar as Gyarados surfaced behind them. A stream of fire emerged from his mouth and incinerated the targets. The duck Pokémon and the dark type stared up at the colossal sea serpent. They blinked.

Misty suddenly burst out laughing, much like she'd done that morning when she'd given Ash his rude awakening. At the time he hadn't been in an admiring mood but now he could fully appreciate her laugh. It was high and clear and it made him smile to hear it. Her whole body was shaking with mirth and Ash found that he had to turn away and desperately think of other things.

"How did you teach Gyarados that attack anyway?" he asked when she'd calmed down. He hoped she didn't notice the blush still plastered across his face.

"Oh, well," Misty began. "Shortly after I first came back I had to attend the annual Gym Leader's conference we hold with the Johto League. There's another one held in the spring for just the Kanto leaders but the joint one is more fun." Misty smiled fondly, as if recalling good memories. "Anyway, I ran into Clair, you remember Clair right?" Ash nodded, the Blackthorn City gym leader had been a good final challenge before the Silver Conference years ago. "Well she told me that she'd taught her Gyarados Flamethrower as a defence against trainers who brought ice types to her gym. I asked her how she'd done it and she said that any Pokémon capable of using fire type moves can feel the heat inside them. If they focus on that heat they bring the fire out." Misty gave a small chuckle. "Easier said than done. It took us ages to get it down; we'd only just mastered it before I left for Hoenn to meet up with you. But the first time I used it against a challenger's grass type…"

* * *

Ash stayed a full week at the Cerulean gym, training and hanging out with Misty. They'd laughed, they'd argued and they'd endured a merciless amount of teasing from Daisy, and from Violet on the one day she'd actually come home to the gym. There was no word on when Lily might do the same.

But Ash's wrist was healing; he had a journey to complete and five more badges to get. Misty had walked him to the eastern edge of Cerulean City, where Route Nine began, to see him and Pikachu off.

"I expect a phone call after every gym battle," she instructed with a stern expression. "Do you understand me Ketchum?"

"What? You want to hear me brag about them?" Ash joked with a sly grin. "I knew you enjoyed it when we travelled together."

"Not likely," retorted Misty. "I just want to know which leaders I have to comfort for losing to such an annoying trainer."

"Ouch," said Ash holding a hand to his heart, though he was still smiling. "You love me anyway though." As soon as he said the words Ash wished he could pull them back. He practically choked on air and a violent heat engulfed his face. Misty herself was the colour of a beetroot.

"Of course," she said, brushing the comment off. Her new complexion stayed in place though. "You're my best friend." She picked Pikachu up off the ground and cuddled him, whispering in his ear. Ash wondered if she was going to get the mouse to Thunderbolt him for his comment. But all Pikachu did was lean up and nuzzle the girl's face before jumping from her arms to Ash's shoulder.

"Well, bye Mist," he said softly after a moment. She bade him goodbye as well with a weak wave. Ash turned to go, took one step and stopped. He took a deep breath then spun around and pulled Misty into a fierce hug. "It was great seeing you again Mist," he told her.

"Yeah," she whispered in his ear, letting her arms encircle the young man. "You too, Ash." He released her abruptly, the blush on his face even darker than before. He gave her a cheeky grin and a wave before trotting away down Route Nine.

Misty didn't stop smiling until long after Ash was out of sight.

* * *

**A/N: **Well there you have it. Now you know the story of how Psyduck became Golduck, the story of how Crawdaunt got over its adolescent angst, the story of how Ash and Misty discovered that hormones are a bloody nuisance and the story of how Vondrakenhof finally finished the Cerulean City part of this story after _three _chapters.

*This is a bald faced lie. Reviews do not give authors super powers, instead they give them the motivation to keep writing and the reassurance that people actually enjoy their work.


	9. Chapter 9

**Vondrakenhof here. **It's another late night posting for this story. If anyone spots any mistakes please point them out so I can go back and fix them.

So hey, did any of you play **Pokémon Red, Blue **or** Yellow **on the Gameboy? How about **Fire Red **or** Leaf Green **for the Gameboy advance? Do you remember that annoying cave you had to go through and it was pitch black inside so you had to teach one of your Pokémon an incredibly useless move called Flash (that was basically Sand Attack with worse accuracy) to get through it? Well that's where Ash is going this chapter. Should be fun right?

Anyway, I hope you'll read and review. Tell me what you liked, what you didn't like and tell me what I can improve.

* * *

**Back Around Again.**

"Go Muk! You can do it!" yelled Ash.

The amorphous purple Pokémon formed a fist with its arm-like slime. It swung with all its might, striking the wall of white fat before it with a loud squelch. The fist splattered and lost cohesion but otherwise there was no effect. Snorlax, who had been acting as Muk's opponent, yawned.

Ash frowned. "Still nothing, huh?" he asked. Muk visibly sagged, almost seeping into the ground in shame. Ash crouched down beside the poison type, giving it a reassuring smile. "Hey, don't worry. I'm sure you'll get it. Just keep practising while you're at Professor Oak's."

"Muh, Muk!" exclaimed the sludge Pokémon with a wide smile. It tackled Ash to the ground, smothering him in a gelatinous hug. The trainer laughed, not for the first time thankful that with the proper care and diet Muk no longer smelled as revolting as it once had. His laughter faded as he noticed the storm clouds gathering overhead.

"Okay guys, time to wrap it up," he announced, worming his way out from under Muk's embrace. He gave the poison type a round, blue fruit, an Oran berry, which was swallowed whole. He tossed two more to Kingler and Pignite, who had just finished sparring nearby. The Pokémon accepted their treat with thanks before a shadow loomed over Ash. He looked up at Snorlax and smiled at his pleading expression. Ash gave him a couple of specially made, high energy pokéblocks. The normal type devoured them instantly before lying back and falling asleep. Ash was just wondering where his other two Pokémon had gotten to when he heard the peculiar sound of rapid freezing. Turning around he found Glalie hovering over his ice pack with a smile on his face. Pikachu cried out as he sung his Iron Tail, striking the pack to break the solid ice within.

"I don't think that's necessary," said Ash when the two of them looked at him expectantly. It was true, it had been a week since he had left Cerulean City and his wrist was almost completely healed. Pikachu still kept insisting that he put ice on the sprain though.

"Pikapi," said the electric mouse sternly, crossing his arms.

Ash narrowed his eyes. "Misty put you up to this didn't she?" he surmised, earning a nod in return. He sighed and rolled his eyes before relenting. Ash recalled each of his Pokémon to their pokéballs and let Pikachu climb onto his shoulder. Together they walked back to the nearby Pokémon Centre.

They'd arrived at the entrance to Rock Tunnel late the night before and had been pleasantly surprised to find the Centre outside. It was smaller than most and the Nurse Joy on duty admitted that she was much busier than usual with the detour in place. Not that Ash had noticed, the only other trainer staying the night had been one who had just come through the cave from Lavender Town.

He waved to Nurse Joy as he walked through the doors before heading for the video phones. Dialling Professor Oak's number he was surprised when Tracey answered instead.

"Hey Ash," the watcher greeted him. "The Professor just stepped out to take care of business in the town. What can I do for you?"

"I'm just looking to change my team before I go through Rock Tunnel," said Ash before telling Tracey which Pokémon he wanted. Tracey nodded, walking away from the screen to gather them. Ash waited patiently, filling the transporter tray with his pokéballs.

"Okay, here they are," said Tracey when he came back. He hit a button on his end and the pokéballs disappeared in brief flash of white light. Moments later the tray was full again. "It was very good of Teroc Industries to set up that detour."

"Teroc Industries?" asked Ash, clipping the new balls to his belt.

"Yeah, they make all sorts of machines," the lab assistant informed him. "As soon as they heard about the operation on Route Five they moved into Rock Tunnel, lighting it up for travellers."

"Why would they do that?" Ash wondered.

"Good publicity," Tracey suggested with a shrug. "Anyway I've got to go. I'm driving back to Cerulean in a couple of hours and I've got to get my work done before then. Talk to you later Ash. Bye Pikachu."

The pair gave their goodbyes before the connection was terminated. They waved again at Nurse Joy and thanked her for letting them rest up.

"Make sure you keep to the lit path," she called after them. "It's easy to get lost in the darkness." Ash yelled back to her, promising that they'd follow her advice before running out into the rain that had begun to fall. Pikachu leapt from his perch on Ash's shoulder, racing ahead towards Rock Tunnel. The entrance was little more than a hole in the side of the mountain, lit from within by a pale light. Ash hurried after his starter.

Partially soaked when they reached it Ash and Pikachu shook themselves to get rid of the rainwater clinging to their bodies. Ash plucked his hat from his head, running his hand through his hair as he looked down the tunnel. A line of connected lanterns, each holding a small bulb, hung from the cavern ceiling. The wire weaved through the stalactites, the light painting the rock yellow. The floor and walls were smooth, all blemishes worn away by time and the traffic of rock and ground type Pokémon.

"Come on Pikachu," said Ash as he replaced his hat. "We've got a long walk before we reach the way station Nurse Joy told us about." Pikachu chattered at him in agreement before retaking his place on the trainer's shoulder. They set off and it wasn't long before the strangely muted sound of the rain was replaced by only Ash's echoing footsteps, the low hum of the lights and a steady dripping of water from the stalactites. Soon the curve of the tunnel meant that the entrance was out of sight.

The oppressive atmosphere of the cave forced the two friends to walk on in silence. After more than an hour of walking Ash and Pikachu came across a fork in the tunnel. The lights carried on down the left path but the other was shrouded in darkness. Ash couldn't help but stop and stare into the black, unsettled by the sheer difference in the tunnels. A faint groan echoed from the depths of the right fork, raising the hairs on the back of his neck. It set him on edge.

"Let's keep moving," he murmured to a frowning Pikachu, unsure as to why he kept his voice low. Ash set off down the lit path once more, his strides lengthened. The sooner he was through this blasted cave the better.

The pair walked for what felt like forever, taking only quick breaks when it was necessary to rest or eat. They passed several more darkened tunnels that branched away from the lit path and each time Ash and Pikachu heard the same groaning sound. It echoed through them and stuck in their minds, giving Ash goose bumps. Each time he passed an opening he picked up his pace.

Finally after nearly a day's walk they found the way station that Nurse Joy had told them lay halfway through Rock Tunnel. It sat within a rounded cavern that Ash's tunnel opened into, the roof much higher than he'd expected. Teroc Industries had installed a generator to keep the lights that lit the cavern and the two tunnels leading into and out of it operating. There was a single story, prefabricated bunkhouse assembled in front of it; its manmade walls a stark contrast to the smooth stone around it. It had no windows, just one door that creaked when Ash opened it.

Ash frowned into the darkness, fumbling for a light switch. When he found it he had to shield his eyes, the fluorescent lights on the ceiling filling the prefab with white light. After so much time under the yellow light of the lanterns the sudden brightness was blinding. Blinking away the spots in his vision Ash saw six empty bunk beds, three on either side of the room. There was a water cooler, a coffee machine and a vending machine. Ash went straight for it, dropping his backpack on the nearest bed.

He dug through his pockets, looking for change. Finding some coins he looked through the glass, selecting a packet of tomato soup and a chocolate bar for afterward. He watched impatiently as his selections dropped to the bottom of the machine. Ash's stomach growled as he took them out of the opening. He didn't know how long it had been since he'd eaten, and that had just been a granola bar he'd shared with Pikachu. He took a paper cup from the dispenser by the coffee machine, pouring his powdered soup into it. It only took a few moments to fill with hot water from the machine.

Ash took a sip and sighed. It was bland, almost tasteless, but he was grateful for the heat. Rock Tunnel wasn't exactly warm. Taking another cup he transferred some of his soup to it before handing it to Pikachu. The electric mouse took it from him and slurped greedily. Ash wandered back to the bed he'd left his stuff on, sitting on it and sipping at his paltry meal.

_It's times like this that I miss Brock the most, _he mused before realising how terrible that would sound aloud. He finished his soup, tossing the empty cup into a bin in the corner, and opened the wrapper on his chocolate. It was some sort of caramel and peanut bar he'd never had before, but it was chocolate and chocolate never steered him wrong. He took a bite, savouring the taste of something actually tasty, and noticed Pikachu's pleading look.

"Oh stop that," said Ash, breaking a piece off the bar. "We both know you're gonna get some so put away the Growlithe eyes." Pikachu smiled, taking the offered chocolate gleefully. Ash knew he shouldn't give in to him, that chocolate was probably bad for Pokémon, but he'd never been able to deny Pikachu anything. It was why the mouse got so much ketchup.

Ash finished his chocolate, the wrapper going the same way as the cup, and shrugged out of his jacket. He lay down on the bed without bothering to remove his shoes or his hat or even turn out the light. He didn't know how long it had been since he'd set out that morning but he was bone tired. Pikachu curled up in a ball by his head and the moment the pair closed their eyes they fell into the dreamless sleep of the truly exhausted.

* * *

Ash awoke suddenly, falling out of the small bed. He looked around blearily before the reason became obvious to his sleep deprived brain. The ground was shaking violently and the walls of the prefab were falling apart. A monstrous roar sounded from somewhere nearby. Ash jumped to his feet, grabbing his jacket and backpack. He rushed for the door.

"Let's go Pikachu!" he yelled, throwing the door open. The electric type darted out of the bunkhouse from between Ash's legs, just as eager to escape as his trainer. The roar assaulted their ears again and the ground beneath Ash began to crack and crumble. It fell out from under his feet as something burst through the cavern floor from beneath. Ash grabbed onto the new ledge, his legs hanging into the darkness.

"Pikapi!" shouted Pikachu, turning back to help his trainer. The little mouse grabbed onto Ash's t-shirt, trying and failing to pull him up. Ash struggled, but without any purchase on his legs he couldn't get anywhere. There was a loud crunch behind them, forcing them to look.

The bunkhouse lay in ruins and a chain of large boulders sat upon them. The Onix roared again and Ash gritted his teeth against the sound. It was larger than he remembered Brock's Onix being and its eyes were like fire. Something had really pissed it off and it was taking it out on the way station. The rock snake Pokémon swung its long stone tail at the humming generator. The machine shattered into pieces under the blow and Rock Tunnel spluttered into darkness.

Something struck the ground next to Ash's hands, showering him with gravel. He lost his grip on the ledge, falling in the darkness and dropping his coat and bag.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu screamed as they fell. Ash held him close to his chest before his back struck rock. He bounced and rolled down an unseen slope, gaining speed. They were only stopped when they hit wall. Ash lay face down, breathing in the dirt.

"Ow," he finally moaned, getting to his feet. He was relieved to find that nothing was broken or even sprained this time. "You okay Pikachu?" he asked. The electric type chattered an affirmative, climbing out of the trainer's hold and onto his shoulder. Ash plucked a pokéball from his belt, snapping it open and releasing its occupant.

A warm orange light filled the cave, revealing it to be another tunnel. The light extended up to the level above, showing Ash that he hadn't fallen that far. The source of the light, a blue and cream mammalian Pokémon with fire emerging from its head and lower back smiled at its trainer. "Quilava."

"Thanks Quilava," said Ash, picking up his jacket and backpack from where they'd fallen. He put them on, staring at the slope he'd fallen down and the hole above. "That doesn't look so bad," he mused. "I think we could climb back up. What about you guys?"

No sooner had he said this did the Onix above roar, diving into the hole and digging into the slope. Ash turned, shielding his Pokémon from the debris. The sound of tunnelling faded away, and the trainer turned back around. And cursed. The slope was gone, replaced by a freshly dug tunnel. There was no way they were climbing back up now.

"Well, it can't get any worse, right?" Ash asked. The tunnel filled with a screeching sound and the young man paled. Pikachu slapped a paw to his forehead. "When am I going to learn to keep my mouth shut?"

A colony of Zubat emerged from the darkness of the lower tunnel, their eyeless faces taking on a sinister appearance in the light of Quilava's flame. Ash and the volcano Pokémon backed up against the smooth rock wall as Pikachu leapt from Ash's shoulder, his cheeks sparking with electricity. Zubat broke off from the main group in twos and threes, swooping for the intruders.

"Pika-chu!" the electric type cried, unleashing a Thunderbolt that crackled through the air. It caught the first of the Zubat, stopping them in their tracks. They fell to the ground a heartbeat later, twitching and smoking. Pikachu continued to zap any of the poison types that thought to attack and each suffered the same fate. It wasn't long before he'd dissuaded them of attacking, the entire colony of Pokémon flying up through the hole in the tunnel roof left by Onix.

"I think it might be best if we move on," said Ash, staring at the unconscious Zubat. His Pokémon nodded and Ash took a moment to get his bearings. Realising that one of the tunnels went on in the same direction the lit tunnel above had led he chose that one. Quilava went first with Pikachu right behind it, their trainer not two steps after them. Ash could only hope the tunnel somehow merged with the one above. He didn't want to be lost in Rock Tunnel forever.

The crackle of Quilava's flames kept the group company as they walked onward, accompanied by the sound of their feet on the stone. Every now and then they would here the same groaning Ash and Pikachu had heard the day before, or at least what Ash thought was the day before, he couldn't be sure how long he'd slept. It hadn't been much at any rate. The groaning was louder down here too, more insistent. None of them liked it.

"Okay you two, I think we should stop for food," said Ash after hours of walking. He knelt down, slipping his bag from his back. He dug through it with Pikachu and Quilava eagerly waiting beside him. He pulled out a tin of wet Pokémon food and two of the bowls he kept at the bottom of the pack. He split the food between the two Pokémon who ate it up greedily. Ash took his canteen out and sighed, drinking just a capful before replacing it. He didn't know how long he'd be in the cave, he needed it to last.

Ash groaned as he realised the only thing he had to eat for himself was another granola bar. He'd bought quite a few in a small town he'd come across before reaching Rock Tunnel, thinking they'd make for a decent snack on the road. They'd turned out to be filling, if dry and tasteless. He grumbled to himself while unwrapping the cereal bar. With a dry mouth it would be like eating-

"Gravel."

Ash froze with the bar halfway to his mouth. Pikachu and Quilava stopped eating. Just outside of the volcano Pokémon's firelight a pair of eyes gleamed. The owner stepped into the orange light, revealing a craggy stone body with four arms and stubby legs.

"Chu!" Pikachu warned the Graveler, getting on all fours with his tail raised into the air. It took on a metallic sheen as the electric type readied his Iron Tail. The Graveler smirked, unimpressed. It growled. More eyes gleamed in the darkness.

"Dude." "Graveler." "Geo" "Geode" "Graveler."

Pikachu's eyes widened. A horde of rock types revealed themselves, growling and sneering at the trio. Pikachu and Quilava began to back up, their fur standing on end. Ash moved his hand to his belt as slowly as possible so as not to startle them.

"Maro-wak."

Ash glanced behind him. A brown, reptilian biped stared at him through the holes in the skull it wore. The Marowak raised the bone it wielded like a club pointing it at the trainer. More Pokémon appeared behind it, a few more Marowak, some of its pre-evolved form, Cubone, and a couple of Machop, the ridges on their heads gleaming in the light.

"Pikachu, Quilava," Ash murmured, keeping his voice low to avoid startling the wild Pokémon. His friends grunted. "When I give the signal I want you to give everything you've got to the Pokémon behind us." The fire type froze, having not noticed the second group but Pikachu simply nodded his head. Ash removed two balls from his belt, gently pushing their buttons to enlarge them. The lead Graveler and Marowak shouted at the same time and Ash threw the balls, roaring at the top of his voice. "Hydro Pump! Leaf Storm!"

The blue and white furred Oshawott and the thin, leafy Snivy burst from their pokéballs in a flash of white. The water type moved his paws in a circle over his scalchop, summoning a torrent of water that raced for the Graveler and Geodude. Snivy glowed green for a moment and a multitude of sharp leaves appeared out of nowhere, soaring on either side of Oshawott's attack, crashing into the rock Pokémon with the water. Pikachu and Quilava leapt to either side of Ash, aiming behind him. Lightning surged from the yellow mouse, doing little more than blind all but the Machop. Furious fire billowed from Quilava's mouth, heating the air of the cave.

"Let's move!" Ash shouted, grabbing his pack and racing for the newly opened hole in the rock Pokémon lines. Pikachu and Quilava were hard on his heels, chased by a number of burned ground types. Snivy, quick on the uptake, wrapped a vine around her trainer's chest, hoisting herself up onto his shoulder for a ride. Oshawott just stared around confused until Ash ran past, grabbing him by the scruff of the neck. Ash leapt over the fallen Graveler and tried desperately to avoid tripping on unconscious Geodude as he ran at full speed past the angry Pokémon.

The ground seemed to shake as the small army behind Ash and his Pokémon hurried after them. Pikachu and Quilava, each running as fast as they could on their four legs, pulled ahead of their trainer. Ash was distracted by Snivy poking him in the neck. He risked a quick look behind him and swore loudly. The ground types were gaining. He tried to pick up the pace.

Quilava planted its forepaws on the rock floor, swinging its body around until it was facing the pursuing Pokémon. It stood defiantly between them and its friends. Ash skidded to a halt, staring back in horror.

"Quilava what are you doing?" he yelled. "We have to escape!" The fire type ignored him, its flames burning brighter.

"Quil-laa-va!" it cried. A plume of fire erupted violently from its back, striking the cavern roof and shaking the tunnel. Stalactites and chunks of the ceiling came loose, crashing down in front of the oncoming ground types. A cloud of dust rose and the tunnel was blocked by debris. The light flickered out.

"Quil- Quilava?" Ash questioned the darkness in a tiny voice, echoed by Pikachu's "Kakakapi". Ash coughed on the newly risen dust but his eyes were stinging for a different reason. He fell to his knees. "Quilava!" he shouted, the word echoing throughout the cavern. There was no answer. Ash hung his head.

The padding of tiny feet drew their attention. Flames burst into life as Quilava stepped closer. It tilted its head, obviously wondering why its trainer had tears streaming through the dust on his face. Ash wiped his eyes.

"Don't scare me like that," he choked, scratching the fire type under the chin. Its fur was soft and warm, like a hot towel. Quilava closed its eyes and smiled, enjoying its trainer's attention.

"La, la!" it cried. Their moment was interrupted by the loud groaning noise that resounded from the bowels of Rock Tunnel. Oshawott let out a shriek, ducking his head into Ash's jacket. Snivy scoffed at him, though Ash could see that she was shaking.

"We should keep going," he said, running his gloved hand through Quilava's fur one more time. He got to his feet, dislodging Oshawott in the process. The water type fell on his back, immediately jumping up and clutching at Ash's jeans. The young man stared down at him, shaking his head in bemusement. He began to walk down the tunnel, the sea otter Pokémon hanging on like a small child would his father. Snivy rolled her eyes, leaping down from her perch on Ash to walk by herself, taking position with Pikachu behind Quilava.

It was a few hours later when Ash realised that he was dragging his feet. Oshawott, who had long since stopped hanging onto Ash's leg, yawned. Pikachu and Quilava's pace had slowed almost to a halt and even the prideful Snivy looked tired. The trainer nodded to himself and removed his backpack. He found a spot against the wall and took out his sleeping bag, laying it down. He didn't bother getting into it; he was worried he might have to get up quickly should any wild Pokémon come across them. Ash put his back to the wall and slumped down onto the bag.

Oshawott collapsed against him in the same position, his head resting on Ash's thigh. The water type began to snore almost immediately. Pikachu and Snivy climbed into their trainer's lap, each of them lying on a leg. Ash soon heard the sound of their soft breathing, knowing that they too had fallen asleep. Quilava crawled as close as it dared to the other four, an unhappy expression on its face. Ash smiled.

"I think we'll be all right without the light for tonight Quilava," he whispered, holding out his hand. The volcano Pokémon smiled and let the fire on its head and back die down until the five of them were in total darkness. Ash felt Quilava snuggle in against his left side, the warmth of its fur spreading to him and the others. Ash laid his head back against the stone wall, listening to his Pokémon breathe.

_This is why I love Pokémon training, _he thought to himself. The battles were a big part of it, sure. And Ash couldn't deny that he loved the adventures he had. But this was the most important part, the bonds that he formed with his Pokémon. Each one he caught became part of his team. Part of his family.

Ash stayed awake, watching over his friends for as long as he could. But before long he too slipped into sleep, comforted by the fact that he was surrounded by family.

* * *

The groaning of Rock Tunnel, as Ash had begun to think of it, woke the trainer. He blinked the crud from his eyes, sure that he'd only gotten a few hours of sleep. Ash stretched with a yawn, feeling his stiff back pop as he did so. He dislodged Pikachu and Snivy from his lap.

"Pikapi," his starter moaned in the darkness. Ash felt Quilava and Oshawott stir beside him.

"Sorry guys," Ash whispered sincerely as Quilava's flames flickered into life. The fire type yawned. "It's not safe to sleep here for too long." The four Pokémon accepted that glumly, but none of them were particularly happy about it. Ash took two cans of food from his backpack, pouring out enough for each. With a stern look he told Oshawott he could only have his own. The water type scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

Ash rolled his sleeping bag back up while his Pokémon ate. His stomach growled angrily. The granola bar he'd had the day before had been lost when the wild Pokémon had attacked. There was nothing else in his bag fit for humans and he was sorely tempted to eat some of his Pokémon's food. Ash pushed that impulse away; it would be a long time before he stooped that low.

After breakfast the group continued to trudge on down the tunnel. The occasional Zubat flitted over their heads and through the stalactites but none bothered the group. Ash wondered if they'd been part of the colony the day before, or heard of Pikachu's power through them. His thoughts were interrupted by the grumbling of his stomach. He did his best to ignore it, with about as much success as he had ignoring the groaning resonating through the cave. After maybe an hour or two of walking the trainer found himself at two divergent tunnels.

"Which one do you guys think we should take?" Ash asked, frowning and scratching his head. Pikachu inspected the pathways, sniffing at the air. His ears twitched and he jumped onto his hind legs. The mouse Pokémon pointed down the left fork, chattering excitedly to Ash. "You can hear people?" the trainer asked. His face lit up and he set off down the tunnel at a brisk jog. "Maybe they have food!"

Ash's Pokémon kept pace with their trainer, Quilava taking the lead to light the way. Each of them were eager to get out of the mountain, the people ahead would surely know the way. It wasn't long before a new sound reached their ears, the clink of metal on stone. Miners. Ash slowed to a stopped, his brow furrowed. His friends looked at him, confused.

_That can't be right, _he thought. The Nurse Joy at the Pokémon Centre had told him that there was nothing to mine for in Rock Tunnel, that anything worth having had been taken away generations ago. He walked on, trying not to make any noise. Soon he spotted a white light entering the tunnel.

"Quilava, put out the fire," Ash whispered. The volcano Pokémon obeyed, the firelight dying down. The light ahead gave them enough light to creep forward and the groaning sound that had plagued them through the cave grew louder. Finally Ash came to a hole in the wall of the tunnel where the light poured through. His back to the wall he looked through to the other side.

"Oh, Mew," he swore quietly, his stomach rolling in revulsion. Beyond the wall was a large cavern lit by several floodlights that were powered by generators like the one that was destroyed at the way station. Another prefab sat at the edge of the cavern. A group of men were hard at work under the supervision of an older woman, some with pickaxes and some with wheelbarrows. They each wore a hard hat and a high visibility vest over their clothes, though a few men didn't bother wearing a shirt beneath it. Ash paid little attention to any of that.

He was staring at what they were mining.

It was a series of rocks bearing a green sheen. It was held down by a pair of Machoke, a pair of Golem and chains. It was the source the groaning heard throughout Rock Tunnel.

"This is sick," Ash muttered angrily, watching as the men with pickaxes dug them into the sides of the shiny Onix, prying chunks of stone the size of his fist loose. He quietly released his final two Pokémon from their capsules. They turned around to greet their trainer happily and froze at the sight before them. "We are going to put a stop to this," Ash told his friends, his voice shaking with rage. "Here's the plan…"

Moments later something round and grey leapt into the cavern. Cracks formed in the ground where it landed and the whole cave shook. The workers stumbled, many falling over as the Earthquake attack took their footing. The sphere unravelled, revealing four stocky legs, a long trunk and two strong tusks. "Don-phan!" the ground type shouted before curling back in on itself and rolling at high speed towards the men. They scrambled to get out of the way.

So preoccupied with the armour Pokémon were they that no one noticed the small electric mouse darting into the chaos after Donphan. At least until he jumped into the air, yelling his name and unleashing crackling Thunderbolts at everything in sight. The workers screamed in agony, their clothes and hair smoking. Several collapsed, twitching.

Four other Pokémon emerged from the hole in the cavern wall, their trainer following after. Gossamer wings carried a large blue insect straight at one of the Machoke holding the Onix down. His powerful horn glowed white as it struck the superpower Pokémon, forcing it back from the rock type. Machoke struck back, hitting the bug type with a Karate Chop. Heracross didn't give any indication that he'd felt the attack, clocking the Pokémon in the face with an orange, glowing forelimb and knocking it down.

A ball of flame descended on the other Machoke, who backpedalled away from the rock snake Pokémon, clutching at its suddenly burned head. Quilava let the flames go out as it landed and with implausible speed shot through the air, striking the fighting type in the chest with an Aerial Ace attack.

Oshawott struck one of the Golem head on, as the sea otter Pokémon surrounded himself in water. The megaton Pokémon roared in pain as it reeled away from the attack. Oshawott burst from the Aqua Jet attack, his face uncharacteristically angry as he took his scalchop from its place on his stomach. A blue light extended from the shell in the shape of a blade and, wielding it like a sword, Oshawott struck at the rock type.

The remaining Golem backed away from the Onix, panic clear on its face as it watched its fellows get attack. It turned around to see a spinning green ball flying through the air before Snivy uncurled herself and whacked it in the face with her glowing green tail.

"Get out of here!" the woman ordered the men in a raspy voice. Her grey hair was pulled back in a ponytail and anger made her wrinkles more pronounced. She wore a red and white check shirt beneath her high visibility vest, with jeans and hiking boots. "Get the stones and load them onto the trucks! It'll all be for nothing if we don't have those stones!" The workers hurried to obey, grabbing the wheelbarrows filled with pieces of the Onix and racing for the tunnel on the other side of the cavern. The woman turned to Ash. "You're going to pay for this, kid."

A large, beefy man with a full, brown beard kicked the door of the prefab open. "Charlie!" he yelled. "What's going on?"

"What do you think, you idiot?" the woman shouted back at him. She pointed a grizzled finger at Ash. "We're under attack!"

"But it's just one little brat!" the man snarled, snapping open a pokéball to release its occupant; a large black Pokémon covered in steel plating. Charlie followed his example, a black and red canine with white horns and ridges on its back materialising in a flash. Ash took several steps back as the Aggron and the Houndoom advanced on him. A geyser of water stopped them in their tracks and a moment later Oshawott careened into the dark Pokémon while Heracross appeared out of nowhere, punching the Aggron away from his trainer. The man growled, rolling up the sleeves of his grey shirt. "Fine, I'll crush him myself!"

Ash had just enough time to register the tattoo that was partially visible on the hulking man's forearm, what might have been _K_ or an _R_, before he was in his face. The older man grabbed Ash by the jacket, hoisting him into the air, rage filling his eyes.

"Pikachu," Ash called out before his assailant could do anything. "Break the chains!"

"Are you mad?" the man holding him questioned. "It'll kill us all!" But it was too late, Pikachu rushed between each chain with a Quick Attack, using his Iron Tail to shatter the links. The Onix roared as it became free, a roar that promised vengeance. The man growled at Ash, pulling his fist back to pummel him when he was steamrolled by Donphan and forced to drop the trainer, who stumbled.

"Pierce, we've got to go!" Charlie yelled to the downed man while staring up at the enraged Onix. Pierce snarled in frustration before getting up as fast as he could and returning his Pokémon. He ran with his colleague to the cavern exit.

Ash looked up at the rock snake Pokémon as his friends gathered around him. It stared at him for a long time, as though deciding whether to crush him or not. After a tense moment it roared again and turned to give chase to the fleeing work crew. Ash breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well done, all of you," he said with a smile. His Pokémon accepted the praise with varying degrees of modesty; Oshawott puffed his chest out while Snivy waved the comment away. Heracross and Donphan were just happy they could help and Pikachu and Quilava had content smiles on their faces.

Ash forced himself to get up, walking over to the prefab and hoping against hope that there was food inside. Looking through the open door he gave a feral grin. There was a vending machine full of sandwiches.

"Well," he said to himself, picking up a hammer that lay on a nearby table. "I'm sure they won't mind if I help myself." Ash smashed the glass front of the machine, taking as many sandwiches as he could at a time. After all, he had no qualms about stealing from people who'd been doing what they were.

* * *

Ash didn't know how long it took them to get out of Rock Tunnel but they'd had to sleep against a wall again. They weren't bothered by any more wild Pokémon; in fact the trainer blamed their earlier aggression on what the miners were doing to the Onix. And though they were dead tired by the time it happened when Ash's Pokémon finally smelled fresh air they all raced for it, the young man himself not far behind them.

When they emerged from the tunnel to see clear black sky dotted with bright pinpricks of light each of them collapsed in relief. The open air never smelled so good, the grass never felt so pleasant and the stars never looked so beautiful. Ash couldn't stop smiling even if he wanted to as one by one his friends, his family, dropped off to sleep. He was too tired, too relieved to be out of the mountain, to even bother with his sleeping bag so he put his arms behind his head and followed their example.

* * *

**A/N: **Well, I did say in the summary that Ash would be meeting new enemies. They're not exactly pleasant people. Again, I ask that you review. I like it when people give me constructive criticism.


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